


Into the World of MCU

by starksphere



Series: When Two Worlds Collide [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Actors, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, MCU characters meet the cast, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-05
Updated: 2019-07-11
Packaged: 2020-04-08 06:00:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 39,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19101139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starksphere/pseuds/starksphere
Summary: The Avengers, especially Tony, are distraught after failing get the stones back from Thanos. Help comes from...(literally) above, when six original Avengers (cast) get sucked into Marvel Cinematic Universe from Endgame Premiere. With their knowledge, the Avengers might have a chance to bring everyone back and possibly changing a few things from the film's plot along the way.





	1. We are the Avengers

**Author's Note:**

> Hi guys!! I know I started "gettting life together" fanfic already, but I couldn't wait for that to be finished for this one. I know there are other fanfics that deal with MCU characters meeting the cast, but I always wanted to do one, so here we are. I might add more actors so they can meet their characters in MCU, but for now I just had the OGs interact with their characters, and vice versa.

Tony woke up with a headache--he didn’t know where he was at first. Then everything came back to his mind--almost dying in space, returning to Earth, venting at Cap…then it hit him: _he lost_ . Yes, he had a vision all those years ago, back in 2015--but no one believed him. His terror of another space war only led him to Ultron, his biggest failure. Ultron cost him JARVIS, and possibly the Avengers…his guilt took over him and made him sign the Accords. Tony sat up, and covered his face with his hands. _He failed_. He should’ve been more careful. He should’ve thought things through. He should’ve…..

 

It was too late. Thanos already wiped half of the universe, and Peter...his--his _kid_ was gone. Tony could still hear his voice... _Mr. Stark, I don’t wanna go_...God, that kid didn’t deserve death. He deserved to be happy, live as a 16 years old kid. But he couldn’t have any of that.

 

“...Tony?”

 

Pepper’s voice echoed in his ear. Tony looked up, and Pepper was standing there with a cup of water, looking worried.

 

“Hey...Pep,” Tony said, trying to sound normal.

 

“You don’t look alright,” Pepper said, handing the water to him. Tony took a sip, then set it down at the table next to his bed.

 

“I’m fine,” Tony said. Of course, he wasn’t fine at all. But he’s been telling himself the exact opposite from what was actually happening or what he actually felt all these years. Denying and hiding his feelings were a few of his expertise. “Just...tired. Where are the others? It’s awfully quiet.”

 

“They…” Pepper hesitated. “They...went to the space, to...um...well, to kill Thanos and get the stones back.”

 

Tony stared at Pepper for a minute. _Did he just hear what he thinks he heard?_

 

At that moment, the Avengers walked in, looking distraught and disappointed. Natasha had tear marks around her eyes, and Thor’s face was still grim, possibly grimmer than before Tony saw him. Before Steve opened his mouth, Tony knew _they lost_. The Avengers--Earth’s mightiest heroes--lost for the first time.

 

“Tony,” Steve said.

 

“I know,” Tony said quietly. “ _We lost_.”

 

“I’m sorry for not being there when you needed me,” Steve said. “I’m sorry for leaving you alone two years ago in Siberia. I’m sorry--”

 

Tony stood up. He simply walked up to him and hugged him tightly.

 

“You’re here, aren’t you? You said it yourself, Cap. We lost... _together_.”

 

Steve hugged back. It was their first hug in two years.

 

“One minute you two were fighting and now you are all hugging? I don’t understand humans,” Rocket said.

 

Tony let go of Steve and looked at well...Raccoon.

 

“Shut up, Furface. We’re having a moment here.”

 

“I don’t have time for your emotional--”

 

Something--or someone, in this case, fell on top of Rocket. There were several groans and grunts.

 

“What the--” Tony started.

 

“Fuck,” a man--who _exactly_ looks like Tony, finished.

 

“Where are we?” a man who looks like Steve asked.

 

“I don’t know, I closed my eyes when it happened,” a man who looks like Thor, answered.

 

“That’s a good question, _what_ happened?” a woman who looks like Natasha asked.

 

“Something _bad_ ,” a man who looks like Bruce answered. “Like really, _really_ bad.”

 

“You don’t mean…” a man who looks like Clint said, looking up.

 

“Can you people get off of me? I. CAN’T. BREATHE!” Rocket shouted.

 

Six of them got up, and Tony and the rest of the Avengers were staring at them in shock. In front of them, six people--six original Avengers--were standing, confused.

 

“Who are you?” Tony asked.

 

“I’ll do you one better,” his counterpart said. “Where are we?”

 

“Upstate New York,” Steve answered. “Now, your turn to answer our question.”

 

“Robert Downey Jr.,” the man answered. “And we are the Avengers.”

 

 

 

 

 

It has been a wonderful day for the Avengers cast, especially for the original six. It was the day of _Avengers: Endgame_ premiere, and it was an opportunity for them to reunite with other cast members, and more importantly, this was the day to show the film to the public for the very first time. Right before the film started, the six original members of the Avengers were chatting in a room.

 

“Today’s the day, huh?” Chris Evans said to the cast.

 

“Yep. God, I was getting tired of keeping secrets,” Robert said.

 

“You think you got tired of secrets? How do you think I’d feel?” Mark asked.

 

The cast laughed--it was sure a tough month for Mark, since every interview had been trying to get spoilers out of him.

 

“You did good, mate,” Chris Hemsworth said, patting him on the shoulders.

 

“Well, this film is the end for most of us,” Scarlett said.

 

“It’s been fun--” Jeremy said.

 

Then, there was a glow from the ground, then within seconds, it sucked six of them into some kind of hole.


	2. Do you trust me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers cast try their best to convince that they are the Avengers' counterparts in an alternate universe. To earn their trust and help, they decide to use their most powerful and only weapon they have--knowledge about the future.

“No--we are the Avengers,” Tony said. “As far as I know, we didn’t recruit new members to the team.”

 

“...Are you...Tony Stark?” the man who looked like Steve asked.

 

Tony laughed. _Did this Steve look alike just ask if he was Tony Stark? Was that even a question?_

 

“No, I’m not Tony Stark,” Tony said, with great amount of sarcasm. “I’m Michael Jackson, what can I do for you?”

 

“So you are really Tony Stark,” Steve look alike said with a sigh. “How did this happen?”

 

“Don’t know,” Thor look alike said.

 

“This is not a coincidence that you all look like us,” Steve said. “Can you introduce yourselves?”

 

Steve looked at his look alike--it really seemed like he was looking at a mirror. He had brown hair and a beard, similar to the one he had a few weeks ago, but they really looked _exactly_ the same, with no question.

 

“Chris Evans,” Steve look alike said.

 

“Chris Hemsworth,” Thor look alike said.

 

“Mark Ruffalo,” Bruce look alike said.

 

“Scarlett Johansson,” Natasha look alike said.

 

“Jeremey Renner,” Clint look alike said, with deep confusion in his eyes.

 

“..And we are the Avengers cast,” Robert said. “We all are actors. We-- _play_ your characters, okay? At least in our world.”

 

Steve frowned. _Play us? What did that suppose to mean? Did that mean they--the Avengers--were mere characters in their world?_

 

“You expect us to believe that you all are from a different universe, and we are just some fictional characters or something?” Tony asked, his arms crossed. Now everyone in the room--even Nebula--was paying attention to the six new arrivals, people with familiar faces. “I’ve seen many weird, abnormal, crazy things in my life, a Mad grape man per se, but this..this is on another level.”

 

“Believe it or not, this--this universe, is called Marvel Cinematic Universe,” Robert said. “And you all are a part of Marvel Comics, a fictional world created by Stan Lee.”

 

“How do we know you are not making this up?” Natasha asked. To be honest, it was freaky to stare at her look alike. It was like someone made a copy of her.

 

“...We know everything there is about this universe,” Scarlett answered. “For example..you and Steve kissed on an escalator while running away from HYDRA.”

 

Natasha and Steve looked at each other awkwardly, and tried to act all normal. Tony looked back and forth between the two with amusement and surprise.

 

“You two... _kissed_?! How did I not know about this?”

 

“It was to cause a distraction,” Steve said, blushing. “It was nothing--”

 

“Really? I thought we were having a moment,” Natasha said with a smirk.

 

Steve was trying to recover from that, but only ended with his face turning even more red. Natasha smiled briefly at the thought of happier, simpler times.

 

“Do you believe us now?” Robert asked.

 

“No,” Bruce said. “That’s not enough. Do you really expect us to believe you based on the fact that these two kissed? They hug each other all the time. A kiss wouldn’t be that surprising.”

 

The Avengers cast looked at each other. They had no idea how this happened--this wasn’t supposed to happen at all. But it seemed like they were indeed, in Marvel Cinematic Universe, where the Avengers were real, and by the looks of it, maybe the day they killed Thanos in 2018. The best thing they could at the moment was to convince these Avengers--the _real Avengers_ \--that they were from a different universe.

 

“What do we now?” Mark asked in a whisper, all worried.

 

“Think of something that only a particular character would know,” Hemsworth whispered back.

 

“Like what? Telling the past movies’ plots aren’t going to do anything,” Jeremy whispered.

 

Chris Evans’ mind immediately jumped to one person Steve thought of dearly: Bucky Barnes. If he could think of something about Bucky, that only Steve Rogers would know...then he would at least be able to convince him. A perfect scene--or memory--flashed in his mind.

 

“Alright then,” Evans said, directly looking at Steve. “Steve, right after your mother--Sarah Rogers--’s funeral, Bucky ( _Tony tensed up at the name_ ) walked you home. When you said you were fine on your own, he said…’The thing is you don’t have to. I’m with you til end of the line.’ And when you said those words to the Winter Soldier in 2014…”

 

“...He remembered,” Steve said quietly. “He remembered who he once was.”

 

Steve stared at Evans, and for a moment, he could’ve sworn that he saw his own reflection in Steve’s eyes.

 

“That’s my memory,” Steve said. “You can’t know that...unless--”

 

“Unless we really are from a different universe and we are your characters in films,” Evans finished the sentence for Steve.

 

“Also, you--” Robert pointed at Tony. “Didn’t want to join Fury’s super secret boy band, and here you are, broken up like Beatles.”

 

And that was enough for Tony to surprisingly believe that these six strangers (but not really) were in fact, the Avengers themselves in a way.

 

 

 

 

 

“...What are we going to do now?” Scarlett asked, sipping a cup of coffee. After they convinced the Avengers, they were each given a guest room to stay for a while. They were all together in Robert’s discussing what would happen from now on.

 

“People must’ve freaked out back in our world,” Evans said. “We were supposed to show up for the premiere and--”

 

“Oh my god...Susan,” Robert said. He could just imagine how terrified she would be after he went missing.

 

“Do we even know if we can go back?” Hemsworth asked, but not too hopefully.

 

“...We have to,” Jeremy said. “Whatever it takes.”

 

“The only person who can help us is Tony,” Mark said. “He created the Quantum Tunnel for time travel. It wouldn’t be too hard for him to develop a portal to an alternate universe.”

 

“He’s not gonna do it for free,” Scarlett said. “Remember, he’s in a very emotional state right now. He probably doesn't even want to be in his workshop.”

 

Robert lifted his head. An idea came to his mind--a horrible one, but also a great one considering the ultimate outcome of _Avengers: Endgame_. Yes, they weren’t the actual Avengers with nanotech or super strength, but they had something the actual Avengers yet to have: knowledge. Knowledge about their future.

 

“...I have an idea,” Robert said. “But you are not gonna like it.”

 

“For a second, I really thought you were Tony Stark,” Jeremy said.

 

“How about this? We make Tony build a portal that connects to our universe, and in return, we tell them what happens in _Endgame_.”

 

“Robert, no,” Evans said. “That will...that will change everything. If we tell them, they don’t even need to wait five years to--”

 

“That’s it, Cap,” Robert said. “They won’t need five years. And...more importantly, we change things for the better. As Professor Hulk and Tony said, changing the past doesn’t change the future. What we change here won’t affect the actual MCU timeline.”

 

The rest of the Avengers looked at each other. It was true that there were a few things they would like to change from the film’s plot...and letting the Avengers know what would happen will help them for sure.

 

“Honestly, I would definitely change a few things,” Scarlett said. “If it all ends well..then maybe Nat doesn’t have to die. Neither does Tony.”

 

“We can give everyone the happy ending they deserve,” Hemsworth said. “I don’t know why or how this happened...but we get to work with these... _our_ characters for real. Wouldn’t we want them to be happy? Change their lives for the better?”

 

Evans sighed. He would be lying if he said he was fine with every decision Steve makes in _Endgame_. Steve wouldn’t want Nat or Tony to die. And this was his chance to make that reality come true.

 

“Let’s do it, then,” Evans said. “For Tony and Nat.”

 

All six Avengers put one of their hands in the middle.

 

“Whatever it takes,” Robert said.

 

 

 

 

“...What did you just say?” Tony asked, staring at the six dopplegangers.

 

“You are gonna build an alternate universe portal for us,” Robert said.

 

Tony shook his head. It has only been days since he got back from space, and he didn’t want to go back to his workshop yet. In fact, he didn’t know if he wanted to go back to being his old self at all. Being in the workshop reminded Tony too much of...Peter. They used have lab days together, where they would work eight hours a day, building robots and working on new projects. Now those days would never come again.

 

“No,” Tony refused. “I’m not going back to work. And just because I’m a mechanic, that doesn’t mean I have to solve your problem.”

 

Robert stepped forward.

 

“But because I’m an actor who _embodies_ you and has been you for the past 11 years, I know how to solve _your_ problem.”  

 

“...What?”

 

“See, we came from the year 2019, right before our final film, _Avengers: Endgame_ premiere,” Robert said. “Which means we know every single detail about what’s about to happen in your universe for the next five years. Long story short, We know how to win against Thanos and bring everybody back.”

 

“If you help us, we’ll tell you how to bring everyone back--especially Peter,” Evans said.

 

The name Peter startled Tony. If he could see his face again...if he could hear his voice again...there’s nothing in this world that he wouldn’t do to make that come true. And if that meant working with the Avengers’ look alikes, so be it.

 

“...Do you really know what’s gonna happen?” Tony asked with doubt. “This isn’t a comic or a movie anymore. This is the real deal.”

 

“If this is really the MCU we’ve known for the last 11 years, then there’s a big chance that most things will work the same,” Evans said. He held his hand out to Tony. “Do you trust me?”

 

When he said those words, Tony no longer saw a tall man with a beard--he saw Steve Rogers that he had known since the Battle of New York. Then, he remembered how much he had wanted to trust Steve again. How much he had missed him as his friend. Tony took Evans'--Steve’s hand.

 

“...I do.”


	3. Welcome to Time Heist...but five years early

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers and the cast take the first step of so-called 'Time Heist,' by heading to San Francisco.

“...Why are we here at 5AM in the morning? I need my sleep,” Natasha said, rubbing her eyes. She and all the other Avengers--including Nebula and Rocket--were gathered in a conference room. The six Avengers from another universe were staring at them with deep thoughts, while most people in the room were barely awake.

 

“‘Cause,” Tony opened his mouth. “This is urgent. More urgent than your beauty sleep.”

 

Tony clapped his hands several times to gain the Avengers’ attention. Some of them--Bruce and Steve--startled and opened their eyes instantly from dozing off.

 

“Alright, guys, listen very carefully because these six might have answers to our problem,” Tony said.

 

“ _Our_ problem? What’s our problem?” Bruce asked.

 

“Thanos! Thanos killing half of the universe is our problem! Where were you for the past few days?” Tony nearly yelled at Bruce out of frustration and impatience.

 

“Tony, we can’t undo what he has done,” Steve pointed out.

 

“That’s where we come in, Capsicle,” Robert chimed in. Steve frowned a bit at the nickname. _How did he know that? He almost sounded like...Tony._ Yes, he knew Robert played Tony Stark in the movies or whatever, but the way he talked was way too similar to Tony. “We know how to undo the Snap. And since we’ve already been through it, we know what and how to avoid stuff.”

 

“What do you mean you’ve already been through it?” Carol asked from a corner.

 

“ _Avengers: Endgame_ , our newest film, picks up right after Thanos’ snap,” Evans said. “Tony coming back to Earth, Thor chopping Thanos’ head off...it all happened in the movie. Five years later, you figure out time travel when Scott Lang--Ant-man--appears in front of the compound with the access to Quantum Realm. Divided into three teams, you collect each Infinity Stone from a different time period and...snap your own fingers and bring everyone back.”

 

“Five years? It took _five years_ for us to figure it out?” Natasha asked. She couldn’t imagine how she would’ve lived five years with the guilt that she couldn’t save others on her shoulders.

 

“Well--you guys were all distraught after realizing you can’t undo the Snap,” Jeremy said. “After that, all of you part your ways...some for the better.” He glanced at Tony.

 

Robert gave Jeremy a glare. He didn’t want to tell Tony and everyone else in the room that he was going to die at the end. That was one of the many things he wanted to change from the film’s plot. He wanted Tony--his character and his companion for the last 11 years--to have a happy ending, at least in this universe. He deserved it after what he has been through since 2008. Tony’s domestic life with Pepper and Morgan, Robert wanted to give him that.

 

  
“So what you’re telling us is that we can fast-forward everything? We don’t have to wait five years?” Rocket--who has been listening to the conversation between the Avengers and their doppelgangers this entire time--opened his mouth for the first time.

 

“Yes, Furface, we’re saying exactly that,” Robert said with a slight smirk.

 

“I called him that a few hours ago,” Tony said, looking amused.

 

Robert turned to him and smiled.

 

“I guess great minds do think alike, don’t we?”

 

“I guess they do,” Tony said, smiling back.

 

Both the Avengers and the cast groaned at the same time.

 

“Great, now we have two Tony Starks in the house,” Natasha said with clear annoyance. “One was more than enough.”

 

“If he had Stark’s brain, we would’ve believed that Robert Downey Jr. is actually Tony Stark,” Hemsworth said.

 

Both Robert and Tony each glared at Natasha and Hemsworth.

 

“You should be grateful for my presence!”

 

“I _am_ smart! I'm a brilliant, intelligent human being!”

 

Steve was becoming impatient two Starks arguing with the Avengers, and he wanted to know what their plan was in detail. If he could see Bucky again...he would do anything to bring him back, to where he was supposed to be. Steve couldn’t believe he lost him _again_ after losing him twice. Just like when Bucky fell from that train, he could do nothing but to watch him turn into dust in seconds.

 

“Guys, let’s get it together, we have a mission to complete,” Steve said.

 

“You managed to wait five years in the original timeline,” Robert said. “A few minutes aren’t gonna kill you, Cap.”

 

“Good point, but I am curious,” Tony said. “What should we do first?”

 

The Avengers cast looked at each other. They exactly knew where to start if they wanted to speed up so called “Time Heist.”

 

 

_San Francisco, California._

 

The Quinjet landed at an abandoned warehouse.

 

“Why are we in San Francisco again?” Tony asked.

 

“To recruit someone who will be crucial to the plan,” Scarlett answered.

 

Tony rolled his eyes and got off the Quinjet. The warehouse was dark with both doors closed, and when he opened them, he was almost blinded with bright rays of sunshine.

 

“...So as we planned, a mix of the Avengers and the cast will head to the place,” Evans said. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and a sweater, instead of the blue suit he wore to the premiere. He borrowed the outfit from Steve, to not stand out and jeans was much easier to move around, compared to a suit. “Tony, Bruce, and I will go.”

 

“...And you have to go because…?” Tony questioned.

 

“You’ll see,” Evans said with a smirk.

 

Three of them arrived at _U-Store-It Self Storage_ , and Tony frowned at the sign.

 

“We will find our crucial member to the team at self-storage? You expect us to take that seriously?” Tony turned to Evans.

 

“You said you trusted me, remember?”

 

Evans went inside, Tony and Bruce following, looking confused.

 

“Hi, I’m here to pick up Scott Lang’s belongings,” Evans said, clearing his throat.

 

“ _We are here to retrieve Lang’s stuff? We flew out all the way to_ \--” Tony couldn’t believe he actually trusted Evans for god’s sake. He wasn’t even real Captain America.

 

“Y--you are...Captain America. And y--you are...Iron Man and you are the Hulk! Oh my god,” the security guard stuttered.

 

“Right, so can you direct us to where Lang’s stuff is? After that, we’ll be on our way,” Evans said, giving his best Steve Rogers impression.

 

The guard nodded, still in awe that he just met three of the biggest superheroes in the world.

 

“Are we _really_ here to pick up Lang’s stuff? ‘Cause if we are--”

 

Tony’s words were cut off by Evans, who simply went up to the van and pushed “Return.” The van made whirring noise, and it soon spit out a _person_ \--Scott Lang.

 

“Ugh...I thought you guys forgot about me,” Scott said, not realizing who he was speaking to. “You..you gave me a good scare--”

 

Scott turned around and saw Captain America, Iron Man, and Bruce Banner. Three of the Avengers were staring at him, Captain with confidence, and Iron Man, and Bruce with extreme confusion and surprise.

 

“Uh...where am I? And...if I may ask, why are you...here? Where’s Hope?” Scott asked.

 

“Scott, how long have you been in there?” Evans asked.

 

“...a couple of minutes, or seconds, I think. I’m not sure,” Scott said, scratching his head.

 

“That’s...impossible,” Tony said. “It’s been 23 days since the Snap. If I’m not wrong, Hope Van Dyne is...gone. She was one of the many to be snapped out of existence.”

 

Scott tilted his head.

 

“Snapped? Wha--what are you talking about? And are you two cool now? ‘Cause last time I saw you guys, you were tearing each other apart in Germany.”

 

Evans laughed at Scott’s assumption. He wasn’t entirely wrong--in fact, Evans _filmed_ the scenes for _Captain America: Civil War_ four years ago. Even with different hair color and a beard, Evans was quite surprised at everyone for instantly recognizing him as Steve Rogers.

 

“Well...I didn’t really fight _him_ ,” Evans said.

 

“Huh?”

 

“You’ll see,” Evans said, patting Scott on his back.

 

 

 

 

When Scott stepped onto the Quinjet, he couldn’t shut his jaw. He saw _another_ Tony and Steve, and basically replicas of the Avengers, staring back at him.

 

“...What’s going on?” Scott asked, dreading for the answer.

 

“Welcome to ‘Time Heist’, ...but five years early, Piss-ant,” Robert said.

 


	4. We will do this--together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers and the cast complete the team by fiding Clint Barton--before he becomes Ronin and convinces him to join the team for one last time to bring everyone back.

“Wait...Come again?” Scott tilted his head in confusion. There were two Tonys--actually no, one was Tony Stark and another was Robert Downey Jr. who, apparently, was from _another_ universe where all of the Avengers were fictional characters and played the character Tony Stark. The same rule applied to the rest of the avengers.

 

“Were you even _listening_? We just explained--” Tony said with frustration in his voice.

 

“No, I heard what you said,” Scott said. “I-I just...have trouble _understanding_ it. So...let me get this straight, you all six--” Scott pointed to the six original Avengers cast. “--are from an alternate universe where you play these six--the Avengers.”

 

Both the Avengers and the cast nodded at the same time.

 

“Okay, I thought being in the Quantum Realm was crazy, but scratch that,” Scott said.

 

The Quinjet landed at the Avengers Headquarters and everyone got out. Scott stared at the inside of the building in awe, possibly because he has never been in an Avengers’ facility. The closest he got was back in 2015, when he tried to sneak inside the Headquarters, only to be caught by the Falcon, Sam Wilson himself.

 

“Okay, we rescued this tiny man here from Quantum Realm. You’re welcome, by the way,” Tony said, patting Scott on the back. “Now what?” He turned to the cast, more specifically Robert.

 

“We build the Quantum Tunnel--” Mark started to speak.

 

Every other cast member stared at Mark, looking worried.

 

“Mark, we’re going to stop you right there, buddy,” Evans said. “We can’t risk it.”

 

“Risk what?” Natasha asked, crossing her arms. She wondered if they were treating Mark differently because he was playing the Hulk or he really possessed something dangerous.

 

“He may not have the ability to turn into the Hulk, but Mark has an _incredible_ ability for spoiling the plot of almost every Avenger movie he has done so far,” Hemsworth said, pressing onto Mark’s shoulders.

 

“Can’t keep a damn secret,” Scarlett teased, smirking.

 

“You leak like bodily function,” Evans said. “At this pace, you’re probably gonna tell them all the _unnecessary_ details before they become needed.”

 

“Guys--” Mark tried to stop the cast from teasing him in front of the actual Avengers, but that only made them to keep going.

 

“C’mon, you live streamed _Thor:Ragnarok_ at its premiere!” Jeremy pointed out.

 

“Okay, for the _millionth_ time, that was only for 15 minutes, AND the audience only heard first few parts of the film,” Mark defended himself, or tried his best as always. “And it’s Instagram’s fault for making the live chat complicated.”

 

“Aww, our Brucie is blaming technology for your light mouth? God, what a shame for Banner,” Robert said. Mark glared at him but Robert went on. “You also spoiled the ending of _Infinity War_ in an interview that everyone was gonna die.”

 

Steve silently observed the interaction between the Avengers cast. They were definitely a team for sure--possibly a lot more than the Avengers themselves actually were. But beyond that, Steve could see them as... _family_. Joking and teasing another--the six cast members formed a bond, a relationship that the Avengers failed to do three years ago when Civil War happened.

 

“...Are you sure that’s not you? ‘Cause he awfully sounds exactly like you,” Scott whispered to Tony.

 

“Well, he’s...me, technically,” Tony responded.

 

“Jokes aside, no, we won’t be building the Quantum Tunnel right away,” Evans said.

 

“What then?” Steve asked.

 

Jeremy stepped forward.

 

“Don’t you guys think it’s time to  bring my character back?” Jeremy said. “We’re missing one of the original members and we can’t win without a teammate.”

 

“No,” Natasha said. “Clint promised to retire and live rest of his life as a loving husband and a father, not a secret agent or an Avenger.”

 

“What do you think happened to Clint’s precious family, then?” Jeremy countered.

 

Natasha froze. She forgot that there was a good chance that some of his family could’ve been...snapped.

 

“You are not saying--”

 

“...They’re all dead,” Jeremy said, with gloom in his eyes. “Clint’s the only survivor. If we leave him alone, he’ll soon become a murderer who kills people like gangs and cartels for the next five years. We can prevent that.”

 

“...Let’s bring Barton home then,” Tony said.  “And make the number even on our side. Isn’t it humiliating that _we’re_ lacking a member rather than those fakes?”

 

“We’re not fakes, you dumbass,” Robert said. “Or should I say... _Tony Stank_?”

 

Evans laughed at the nickname, so did Rhodey.

 

“Oh, you are my favorite Tony now,” Rhodey said, laughing so hard.

 

Tony glared at Rhodey, who didn’t even notice from all the laughing.

 

“At least we have _actual_ powers, and you six don’t,” Tony said, puffing his chest.

 

“This is ridiculous,” Rocket said. “You all are ridiculous. It’s like Quill and idiots all over again.”

 

Robert turned to Rocket.

 

“Shut up, Trash Panda,” Robert said. “The only non-idiot out of the Guardians is Gamora, no arguments.”

 

That shut Rocket up pretty fast.

 

“...No more bickering,” Steve said. “Let’s go.”

 

The rest of the Avengers nodded, some of them already complaining about double Tonys’ presence. With the exception of Scott, who didn’t see the necessity to go and also wanted some rest, 11 Avengers and the cast boarded the Quinjet once again, to bring one last Avenger home.

  
  
  


_The Bartons_.

 

Clint Barton was genuinely practical guy when it came down to missions. He was almost never optimistic or pessimistic about a certain outcome and saw things as they were. When the Chitauri invaded New York back in 2012, he didn’t think the world would be dominated by the god of mischief. No, he focused on defeating him and his army. While Ultron was more a difficult villain to defeat, he didn’t think about the fact that the world might really end within seconds if the Avengers did not figure out a proper solution. They won at the end, with one casualty. Even--even when the Avengers were divided into two and had to fight Tony and his team, even when he was put on house arrest for two years as a consequence of his actions--Clint Barton was _always_ practical. His emotions never got in the way of accomplishing or failing a mission.

 

But this was not the case. When his family--his wife, daughter, and two sons silently disappeared 23 days ago, it felt like everything in the world didn’t matter. The Avengers were useless as SHIELD, and Clint did not hesitate to drink excessive amount of alcohol every single day for the past 23 days, watching news and figuring out it was a villain named Thanos who killed half of the universe, including his family. He immediately thought of following them, committing suicide. But--something stopped him. It wasn’t fear. It was his instinct as an agent--as a soldier. If he lived a bit longer, maybe he will find the reason to live. Clint wasn’t sure when would that be, but he couldn’t die until this weird feeling went away.

 

When Clint opened probably his 10th bottle of beer of the day, he heard...the Quinjet. Just like when he brought the broken Avengers three years ago to this house--the safehouse--the Quinjet was soon standing in front of the house. Clint walked out of the house, holding the beer in his hand. And, like the old times, five original Avengers walked out. They were all looking at him with extreme concern--especially Natasha.

 

“...Easy there, Legolas,” Tony said, walking towards him. Others followed. “Please don’t pick up alcoholic habits like my father did.”

 

When Steve saw Clint for the first time in two years, he was almost unrecognizable. But Steve understood--he reminded Steve of the time he lost Bucky for the first time, right after he fell from the train. Although Steve couldn’t get drunk, he felt the same way as Clint does now-- _empty_.

 

“Oh, Clint…” Natasha was crying, and when she reached him, she hugged him tightly. He looked like he hasn’t taken shower in days, possibly weeks, and his face just reflected sadness and hopelessness.

 

“Hi, Nat,” Clint spoke at last. He didn’t know what else to say.

 

“You’re okay,” Natasha said, still hugging him. “It’s okay...we can fix this.”

 

“ _No_ ,” Clint said, trembling. “ _Don’t give me_ ... _hope_.”

 

“I’m sorry I couldn’t give it to you sooner,” Natasha said. “We...found something. A chance. A chance to bring everyone back.”

 

Clint stared at Natasha. For a second, his eyes lit up.

  
  
  
  
  


“...Okay,” Clint said, staring at the Avengers cast inside the Quinjet.

 

“ ‘Okay?’ That’s it? You’re just gonna believe us?” Robert asked. Out of all the Avengers, Clint was the first and only person to simply accept the fact that they were from a different universe.

 

“A giant purple man killed half of universe with the snap of his fingers,” Clint said. “I think I’ll believe anything after that.”

 

“...Good point,” Robert said, nodding.

 

“Alright, now we are a complete set,” Tony said, clapping. “We’re ready for your plan. The ‘Time Heist’, as you call it.”

 

“We can’t guarantee if everything is going to work out the way we know,” Evans said. “We have more people in the game--more variances. Higher chances of both successes and failures. But--I believe us six were sent here--into this world for a reason. We will do this--together.”

 

All the Avengers and the cast nodded.

 

“We are a team,” Steve said. “We always were--and always will be.”

 

 _12 Avengers._ _Two Worlds. One Goal._

 

Endgame has begun.

 


	5. You can do this, I believe in you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony attempts to create the Quantum Tunnel--and fails. With Tony's unexpected failure, an unexpected guest arrives at the Headquarters as well, surprising both the Avengers and the cast.

“...Now we build the Quantum Tunnel,” Robert said to the Avengers. “Which is entirely up to _you_ , Tony. God, that felt weird, it’s like calling myself.”

 

“I’m telling you, you really could be Tony’s long lost twin,” Scott said.

 

A couple of the Avengers nodded in agreement, including Steve and Natasha.

 

“I thought you all were going to help me,” Tony said. “Isn’t that what six of you are here for? So we can save the universe and you know, bring the ‘dead’ back?  Why is building a damn time machine up to me?”

 

“We _are_ helping you,” Robert said, looking Tony right in the eye. “I don’t know if you remember, but we have the _knowledge_ , the plot of the film. Since it is already 3 hour long, they didn’t exactly show how you build it.”

 

Tony was about shout at his counterpart for making him believe that they could really bring everyone back--especially Peter. Robert held his hand up.

 

“But,” Robert said with a pause. “But--with your technology and brain, you can figure it out very easily. I mean you did it overnight so it can’t be that difficult for the genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, can it?”

 

“Stop boosting his ego, please,” Natasha said. “We already have enough of that.”

 

“I’m just giving him a motivation speech,” Robert defended. “But he is a genius, especially if he can figure out time travel in a night.”

 

Tony smirked at that. Maybe Robert was _really_ him, his alter ego or something, because Tony, too, was seeing the incredible similarities between Robert and himself.

 

“I’ll get down to my lab,” Tony said to the team.

 

Robert watched Tony walking down to his lab. _If everything happens as it’s supposed to, he’s going to die._ It hasn’t been five years because he and other cast members showed up, but soon he would have Morgan, his lovely daughter. He would have a _family_ , and in one way or another, he would leave them. And this time Tony wouldn’t even watch Morgan grow up. He wouldn’t see her speak for the very first time, or walk, or call him “Daddy.” Robert wanted to change that. From the moment he and other cast members stepped in, this became a different world from the original MCU. Which means--maybe--Tony doesn’t have to die at the end of this. Then maybe--

 

“Robert. _Robert_!” Evans was calling him.

 

“Huh? Yeah, I’m here,” Robert said, snapping back to reality.

 

“We’re gonna go down for lunch, you coming?” Evans asked.

 

“Sure, of course I’m coming,” Robert said.

 

_I’m going to save him. I’m going to save Tony Stark._

 

Robert followed the other Avengers down to the kitchen, feeling hungry.

  
  
  
  
  


“It’s not working!” Tony shouted, coming out of his lab. The Avengers turned around and found Tony with crumbled papers under his hand, looking frustrated.

 

“Tony, what’s wrong?” Steve asked.

 

“It’s not working! I can’t figure it out,” Tony said. “I can’t figure out time travel. I-I tried everything. I looked up Hank Pym’s past works, went back and studied the basics of quantum physics, and--I can’t do it.”

 

“Tony…” Steve put an arm around Tony. It hurt Steve to see Tony suffer in pain...He deserved so much better.

 

“Whatever you guys thought of me in your film, I’m not _that_ Tony,” Tony said, almost bursting into tears. “You guys overestimated me. I’m not...I’m not smart enough to do this.”

 

The Avengers cast stared at Tony. They never thought he wouldn’t be able to figure it out. In films, he was always portrayed as this genius, the mechanic, who could fix everything. Sure, there were a few times where he failed and almost died, but in the end, Tony always pulled through. But then they remembered they were all living in a fictional world, where the plot was determined by the directors and screenwriters. Yes, MCU was a lot more than just a superhero universe, at least to the cast themselves and the fans, but everything in that universe was generated by people outside of it. There was no guarantee that Tony could actually figure the time travel out at this moment, especially when things didn’t go exactly as they did in the film. Maybe Tony had acquired better technology and knowledge over the period of five years.

 

“God, what are we gonna do now?” Mark asked the rest of the cast. “You know Bruce can’t help. He just knows how to deage people.”

 

“Maybe he just needs...time, you know,” Hemsworth said. “He had five years in the film. If we give him more time--”

 

“We can’t just sit around and wait five years for him to figure it out,” Scarlett said. “We don’t even know giving him five years is going to fix the problem. He needs... _motivation_.”

 

“A chance at bringing everyone back isn’t enough?” Jeremy said.

 

“...Peter,” Evans said. “We need Peter. A picture with Peter smiling. That’s what got Tony to attempt time travel in the first place.”

 

“But as you can see, Peter is not here,” Robert said. “And I don’t even know where the picture is.”

 

 As if that was the signal, a bright blue light surrounded the room and dropped another figure. Robert and Tony immediately recognized the figure as the light faded.

 

“ _Tom?_ ”

 

“ _Peter?_ ”

 

The figure stood up and saw two Tony Starks staring at him, both with surprise and confusion. Then, he soon noticed that there were replicas of each Avenger in the room and they were all eyeing him.

 

“Robert? Guys? Uh, what’s happening?”

 

“Tom, how in the world did you get _here_?” Robert asked, but was a bit relieved to see him.

 

“I-I was on the set of _Chaos Walking_ and some blue light grabbed me and I’m...here,” Tom explained.

 

“...So I take it you’re not Peter then?” Tony asked in disappointment. He really thought Peter, _his_ Peter, was back for a moment. But this must be Peter’s counterpart in the other world.

 

“Wait...There’s two of you,” Tom said. “And...this is the Avengers Headquarters.”

 

“Tom, this is going to sound crazy, but you are in Marvel Cinematic Universe,” Robert said.

 

Tom looked at Robert. _No, he must be lying. That couldn’t be true. That wasn’t...possible. MCU was a fictional world. But...there were two Tony Starks. Two Steve Rogers. Two Thors--who weren’t fat yet._ Tom didn’t want to believe it, but when he looked into Robert’s eyes, he knew he was telling the truth.

 

“...So you guys been stuck here for a day now, then?” Tom asked after six Avengers cast explained everything that has happened so far to him.

 

“Yes,” Evans said. “Did something major happen back in our world? Is everyone looking for us?”

 

“No,” Tom shook his head. “If something like that happened, they would’ve called me. Or it would’ve been all over media by now.”

 

That relieved the cast a little bit, but they still couldn’t keep thinking about family back home, who will find out what happened to them anytime now.

 

“I don’t want to interrupt, but who exactly are you?” Steve asked.

 

Tom turned around and saw Steve Rogers, the _actual Captain America,_ speaking to him. Yes, he has already met Chris Evans before, but there was a difference between meeting the actor _and_ meeting the actual character. He could feel he was getting nervous again.

 

“Uh...hi, I’m Tom Holland,” Tom introduced himself. “I play Peter Parker, or Spider-Man in my world.”

 

“...Peter,” Tony said. “You’re...Peter, in a way.”

 

Tony just walked up to Tom and hugged him tightly. Tom was surprised, but remembering Tony lost Peter not long ago, he hugged him back.  

 

“I guess we’re now at the hugging stage,” Tom said in Queens accent. “Right, Mr. Stark?”

 

The Avengers and the cast could swear they heard Tony sniffle, but didn’t dare to ruin the moment.

 

“...I’ll be down in my lab if anyone needs me,” Tony said quietly.

  
  
  
  


“That was...strange,” Tom said after Tony left.

 

Steve frowned at him, realizing he wasn’t...American. In fact, he very much sounded like British.

 

“Wait...are you...British?” Steve asked in confusion.

 

“Yes, I am,” Tom said in delight. “I know Peter is American, so I just switch the accents when I act.”

 

“...I think I just had one of the most shocking moments in my life,” Scott said, eating his orange slices.

 

Robert patted Tom on the back.

 

“Tom, would you please go down there and cheer Tony up?” Robert asked gently. “He...he’s trying to figure out time travel, and he can’t. Maybe your presence would help him. He’s been...very down since the Snap.”

 

“Sure, Robert,” Tom said.

 

Walking down to Tony’s lab was a complicated matter, because one, Tom didn’t _know_ where the lab actually was and two, he had _no idea_ what he was going to say to Tony. He could tell Tony missed Peter _so_ much...but he knew he wasn’t _actually_ Peter Parker. Yes, Tom could probably act as if he was Peter a few times, but he knew he couldn’t become Peter Parker. With that thought in his mind, Tom finally made down to Tony’s lab.

 

When the double doors opened, Tom couldn’t help but be in awe for a moment. There were all the Iron Man suits, the _real_ ones, and all the hologram technology that is only possibly in films back in his world. _I really am in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This is all real._ Whirring sounds were heard at the back of the lab, and Tom headed there.

 

Tony was trying to design a model for the Quantum Tunnel, which by looks of his face, it wasn’t going too well. As Tony threw a piece of paper to the ground, Tom spoke up.

 

“....Mr. Stark,” Tom called him, switching back to the Queens accent.

 

Tony looked up. There, for a moment, he saw _Peter_. When Peter came over to his lab and worked on projects together with Tony. His voice. Everything looked, and sounded like Peter. If Tom said he was Peter from the beginning, Tony would’ve believed him.

 

“Did the other me send you?” Tony asked.

 

“...Yes, he did,” Tom replied. “But I...I wanted to talk to you.”

 

“About what?” Tony said.

 

“Look, I know you are hurt,” Tom said. “You saw...Peter, your _son_ , die in your arms. I might not have Spider Sense, but I do have strong emotions, especially as an actor. I felt the pain as much as Peter and you did, Mr. Stark. I know you think you failed. That you couldn’t stop Thanos. That there’s no way out of this. But there is a way to fix this. And you--Mr. Stark, you can do it.”

 

Tony shook his head.

 

“No, I can’t,” Tony said, crying. Tony Stark _never_ cried. And here he was, crying in front of a familiar face and a stranger. “You guys all thought I could figure it out in a day. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but I can’t do this. Time travel is out of my reach. It’s not something I...I do.”

 

Tom simply hugged Tony, who was collapsing to the ground. Tony was shaking and Tom patted him on the back, until he calmed down a bit.

 

“You can do this, I believe in you,” Tom said. “I always looked up to you, Mr. Stark. You were my hero. There’s no one else in this world who can figure this out other than you. You are Iron Man after all. Earth’s best defender. Without you, there are no Avengers.”

 

At that very exact moment, Tony saw Peter in front of him.

  
  
  
  
  
  


_A few days later._

 

“I figured it out,” Tony said with delight at breakfast. “Time Travel. I did it.”

 

Everyone smiled--especially Tom--and congratulated Tony for his great work.

 

“All thanks to you, Tom,” Tony said.

 

“I knew you could do it, Mr. Stark,” Tom said, but this time in British accent.

 

Tony frowned.

 

“Wait--you are British?” Tony said in surprise. “Are you saying my Peter in your world is British?”

 

All Avengers and the cast burst into laughter. It was always good to see Tony Stark getting a surprise--especially if he was the only one who didn’t know about it.

 

“Hey, he’s _my_ Peter, so back off,” Robert said, defensively. “His name is Tom.”

 

“Since he plays Peter Parker, technically he’s _mine_ ,” Tony said. “I’m gonna keep him until you all leave.”

 

Robert stood up from his seat.

 

“He’s my underoos, and you are _not_ keeping him!”

 

Natasha shook her head.

 

“And here we go again.”

 

“Do they ever going to stop fighting?” Steve asked.

 

“Nope, and you guys should get used to it,” Evans said.

 

Tom looked around the table.

 

“...Did I do something wrong?”


	6. You didn't see that coming?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers cast tell the truth about what happens at the end of Endgame, and decides to form a new, but more complicated plan where everybody lives. When Clint is given the chance to go back in time as a test run, he makes a choice that shocks everyone.

“...So, have you guys told Tony yet?” Tom asked to the rest of Avengers cast. They were chilling in the guest room, planning the next step.

 

“Tell him what?” Robert asked.

 

“...That he’s gonna die--”

 

Robert put his hand on Tom’s mouth, cutting him off.

 

“No, we haven’t,” Robert said. “You can’t tell him. At least not yet. If everything we’re planning right now goes right, he won’t have to...die.”

 

“But there’s a bigger chance of him dying,” Tom said, taking Robert’s hand off his mouth. “What happened in MCU is the proof. Dr. Strange said there’s only _one_ chance of us winning.”

 

“And that chance didn’t include _us_ ,” Evans pointed it out. “We all know what’s about to happen. We can fix this. We can save him. We can save everyone.”

 

“No, we _can’t_ ,” Tom said firmly, standing up. “We’re not the Avengers. We don’t have super strength, superior armor, or anything. All we have is knowledge. Knowledge that is not 100% guaranteed. That’s all we have to offer. And you guys are telling me you are going to hide the fact that he’s going to die at the end?”

 

“We’re not hiding anything,” Robert said. “We’re are just--”

 

“Tony deserves to know,” Tom said. “ _You_ know that. You know it better than anyone.”

 

Tom was right. Tony...he deserved to know. Like it or not, there was a good chance that Tony could die at the end of this, regardless of how the cast tried. The Russos could be right. Dying, sacrificing for the universe could be Tony’s destiny. Death was and _is_ , scary. There’s no denying that. Maybe Robert didn’t want to tell Tony because that might prevent Tony from doing something. Then the plan would fail and the Avengers would lose. But he was wrong. He knew that Tony would sacrifice himself a million times if it meant others could live in peace. That was the Tony Robert has known and been. A smile formed on his lips. Tom--this kid--has grown. Grown enough to voice his own opinion and teach Robert himself what was right and wrong.

 

“You’re right,” Robert said. “He does deserve to know. The entire Avengers do.”

 

“Robert--” Evans said.

 

“He’s not going to walk away from it, Cap,” Robert said. “Trust me.”

 

“We would definitely need a better plan than the Russos came up with then,” Mark said. “What should we change?”

 

The Avengers cast gathered around for an hour to formulate ‘Time Heist--but better.’

  


“While the Quantum Tunnel is still  in the works, we wanted to explain our plan,” Robert said to the Avengers.

 

“So you’re basically going to tell us what happened in your film?” Clint asked.

 

The cast nodded--but slowly.

 

“In a way, yes,” Evans said.

 

“What do you mean ‘In a way’?” Natasha asked, frowning.

 

The Avengers cast looked at each other. This was the moment--the moment they had to tell the full truth.

 

“...At the end of the film, you guys win. The Avengers bring everyone back,” Robert said. “But...with a price. With a heavy one.”

 

“What’s the price?” Tony asked, dreading the answer. It felt like he already knew what the answer was going to be--he has known the ending since the New York Battle in 2012. His fear was only solidified in 2015 when Scarlet Witch showed him the vision. It hasn’t happened yet. But now…

 

There was silence among the cast. They didn’t want to say what they were about to say, but they knew it was necessary. Tony and Natasha deserved to know what’s about to him them--it was the best thing the cast could do.

 

“....Not all of you make it,” Tom said. “Including _you_ , Mr. Stark.”

 

Tony’s heart sank. He has always known _his_ ending--but getting it confirmed hit him hard. He had hoped this wouldn’t happen. He had hoped he could live with Pepper on a farm, maybe raise a kid along the way. But his hopes were always been too high for the reality…

 

“No!” Pepper screamed. She broke down and started crying. “No, no, no…”

 

Tony helped Pepper up, and hugged her tightly.

 

“It’s alright, Pep,” Tony said. “I always knew this was going to happen. You’ll be...okay.”

 

Scarlett knew this was the worst moment to tell the Avengers that there was more to the price, but she thought it was better to get everything out of the way at the same time.

 

“...Tony is not the only one who doesn’t make it,” Scarlett said.

 

The Avengers turned to her. There was a moment of silence.

 

“...Who else?” Steve asked, afraid of what the answer was going to be.

 

“Do you know how Thanos got the Soul Stone?” Scarlett asked. Most of the Avengers shook their heads--with one exception: Nebula. “He dragged to her to a planet called Vormir, and sacrificed her for the Stone. A soul for a soul. That’s the only way you get the Stone.”

 

“Which means...one of us died for the Soul Stone this time?” Steve asked.

 

Scarlett nodded.

 

“Who--”

 

“It’s me, isn’t it?” Natasha said, with a sad smile. “I sacrifice myself at Vormir.”

 

Scarlett nodded again.

 

“You and Clint go to Vormir--not knowing one of you won’t return with the other,” Scarlett said. “You two both fight each other to die, and at the last moment...you win. You fall from the cliff and...well, you know what happens.”

 

Another wave of silence hit the Avengers.

 

“The good news is,” Robert said, breaking the long silence. “We can prevent all that. It may be more complicated and difficult, but we have found a way where everyone can live.”

 

“We present-- _Time Heist 2.0_ ,” Mark said. “We originally went to 2012 New York, 2013 Asgard, 2014 Morag and Vormir to get all six stones. New York had three stones--Time, Space, and Mind. However, we only succeeded at retrieving two stones, excluding Space.”

 

“The Tesseract? Why?” Bruce asked his counterpart.

 

“Well...Stark had this great plan of getting it by giving a heart attack to his past self,” Hemsworth said. “Then...he got hit on the head with the Hulk, and Loki took the Tesseract and escaped.”

 

Thor startled at the name ‘Loki.’ He hasn’t heard the name since his death and it was painful to hear his brother’s name out loud again, especially from his counterpart from a different universe.

 

“Loki,” Thor said. “He’s...alive at that time.”

 

Thor’s voice sounded so desperate and was filled with sadness.

 

“Yes, he is,” Hemsworh said. “You can save him too.”

 

“For the Space Stone, you are going back to 1970,” Robert said. “...To retrieve more Pym particles.”

 

In fact, the main reason they were sending the Avengers--more especially Tony--was to have him meet his own father, Howard. One of Robert’s favorite moments during the shooting _Avengers: Endgame_ was Tony meeting Howard and getting a closure that he never had. He wanted the meeting to be a surprise for Tony, for him to feel the same emotions as Robert did as the character.

 

“Yes, so we can save people like...Loki and others who died,” Evans added. “As for the Reality Stone and Power Stone, you will just head to Asgard and Morag as before. Now for the Soul Stone. We will not take the Soul Stone at Morag in 2014. Instead, we will take it from Thanos’ grip in 2018, right after he got it.”

 

“Wait, you’re saying we’re going to fight Thanos who already has most of the Stones?” Bruce asked.

 

“That’s the only way to ensure everybody lives,” Evans said.

 

“And we are going to get the Soul Stone last,” Jeremy added. “At that point, we will have five stones in our hands. Thanos only has Power, Space, Reality, and Soul.”

 

“What if Thanos takes our Stones? What if he gets his hand on Time and Mind?” Bruce asked. “Then we lose. We’ll be doing Thanos a huge favor.”

 

Steve stood up from his seat.

 

“Then we’ll make sure that never happens,” Steve said firmly. “Whatever it takes.”

 

Robert suddenly remembered how Thanos justified his actions throughout _Infinity War_.

 

_“A small price to pay for salvation.”_

 

_“The hardest choices require the strongest wills.”_

 

A small smirk formed on Robert’s lips.

 

_That’s why you lost, Thanos. Because you are willing to sacrifice the only thing that matters. And you will lose again this time around. Not because we are stronger than you. But because we are willing to do whatever it takes to save the ones we love._

 

Robert was going to make sure no one, not a single _soul_ , dies in this Endgame.

  


_Two weeks later._

 

“Okay, the Quantum Tunnel is up and running,” Tony said. “Legolas, you ready?”

 

“I’m ready as I’ll ever be,” Clint said, checking his suit for one last time.

 

“Hold up, if this really works, why can’t we go back and just find Baby Thanos?” Rhodey asked. “And...you know…” He made a hand gesture suggesting that they should just kill Baby Thanos.

 

“First of all, that’s horrible,” Bruce said.

 

“It’s Thanos,” Rhoedy argued.

 

“And secondly, time doesn’t work that way,” Bruce explained. “Changing the past doesn’t change the future.”

 

“...Do you ever get a deja vu?” Robert said to the cast. “This is how exactly a deja vu feels like.”

 

“I mean, we _are_ following _Endgame_ ’s plot for the most part,” Mark said.

 

“I still think Baby Thanos idea is hilarious,” Tom said.

 

“Long story short, if we change something in the past, instead of affecting _our_ future, it just creates an alternate timeline,” Tony said.

 

“So... _Back To the Future_ is a bunch of bullshit?” Scott asked himself, in very much disappointment.

 

“Yes,” Tony said.

 

“No,” Robert said.

 

Tony and Robert looked at each other. Before Tony could argue, Robert opened his mouth first.

 

“Not in my world,” Robert said. “God, what a great movie. A classic.”

 

“You just said that to annoy me, didn’t you?” Tony asked, frustrated.

 

“Hmm, what did you say? Sorry, wasn’t paying attention,” Robert said, smirking.

 

Tony rolled his eyes and walked away.

 

“Alright, Clint, we’re going in 3...2...1…” Bruce said and in a flash, Clint was out of sight.

 

“Bringing him back in 5...4...3...2...1…”

 

And Clint was back, but with another person this time.

 

“I thought he was gonna bring back his kid’s baseball glove,” Jeremy said. He then noticed _who_ Clint brought back. “Oh, no, you didn’t….”

 

The person looked up, panting. The Avengers were shocked at a familiar face--who was supposed to be dead. Pietro Maximoff was next to Clint.

 

“You all look like some crap and seen a ghost,” Pietro said. “You didn’t see that coming?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapter title of 'You didn't see that coming?' is a nod to the Avengers finding out Tony and Nat would've died originally (since they had no idea and it's a major shocker) and Clint bringing back Pietro (which was originally planned but the writers changed it later in the production).


	7. Whatever it takes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers get ready for the Time Heist and the cast is trying to make sure no one dies trying this time around.

“...Didn’t he bring back a baseball glove in the film?” Robert asked to the cast, confused. Clint choosing to bring Pietro back was the second time things happened differently than the film. First it was Tony having a mental breakdown on time travel and now this. Robert was glad to see Pietro again and knew Wanda would be overjoyed when she comes back, but he couldn’t help but wonder if more things will happen differently than the film. If too many things go down a different path, their plan might fail.

 

“I know I’m going to see my family again after this,” Clint said. “Then I wanted to save someone I couldn’t before.”

 

Pietro got up and waved at the Avengers and the cast.

 

“So it is true,” Pietro said. “There are two sets of you and you just figured out time travel.”

 

“Wanda will be happy when she sees you,” Steve said.

 

“We can bring her back, right?” Pietro asked.

 

Steve nodded. He turned to Clint, who simply nodded towards him. Steve understood that Clint probably already told Pietro what happened and what was they were trying to accomplish.

 

“Yes,” Robert confirmed it. “She will be back for sure.” _If everything goes right._

  
  
  


“Okay so the ‘how’ works,” Steve said, looking at the projections of the six Infinity Stones in front of him. “Now we gotta figure out the ‘when’ and the ‘where.’ Almost all of us has had an encounter with at least one of the six Infinity Stones.”

 

“Well I’d substitute the word encounter for damn well near been killed by one of the six Infinity Stones,” Tony said casually.

 

“I haven’t,” Scott said. “I don’t even know what the hell you’re all talking about.”

 

“Why are you even here again?” Tony asked frowning. “We’ve been talking about the Stones since--”

 

“We already know the ‘when’ and ‘where,’ Spangles,” Robert said, cutting Tony off. Tony glared at Robert again. “You and Tony will head to 1970, New Jersey--yes, the exact place you and Romanoff went to in _Winter Soldier_. Evans, Scott, Bruce, and I will head to 2012 New York. Thor and Rocket will go to 2013 Asgard. Rhodey and Hemsworth will head to 2014 Morag.”

 

“After we get Mind, Space, Reality, Time, and Power Stone, we will regroup and head to 2018 Vormir for the Soul Stone,” Evans said. “We’re gonna need every power we can get, past Thanos already has four stones.”

 

“...Jeremy, Mark and I will keep an eye out for anything unusual here,” Scarlett said.

 

“What about me?” Tom asked. “What’s my job?”

 

“....You’re just gonna stay here,” Robert said. “And...look out for others.”

 

“So basically I don’t have a job,” Tom said. “You are treating me like a kid. I’m not 17 like Peter Parker. I’m 22.  I _can_ be responsible.”

 

“Tom, we’re talking about saving the universe here,” Robert said. “It isn’t your place to intervene... _yet_. Kid, don’t look at me like that--I’m just trying to keep you safe.”

 

“...I’m an Avenger, remember?” Tom said, disappointed.

 

“That you are, kid,” Robert said, patting his back. “But we got this.”

 

Robert hugged Tom. Tony was watching the interaction between the two from a distance.

 

“...You know, if you told me that’s you and Peter, I would’ve believed you,” Rhodey said.

 

“I’m going to hug him when he comes back,” Tony said, turning to Rhodey. “I’m gonna hug him better than that dumbass does.”

 

“How about us?” Natasha asked. If they were excluding her because she originally died in the film, she wasn’t going to walk away from it. She noticed they didn’t assign Clint anything either.

 

“You and Clint are going to head to Vormir when we come back to retrieve the Soul Stone,” Evans said. “Everyone’s going, but you are going to need all the energy you have. It won’t be easy to take the stone away from his grip.”

 

Nebula, who was silently listening got up. Everyone’s attention turned to her.

 

“...What am I going to do?” Nebula asked.

 

Robert and the other cast members exchanged glances. They weren’t sure what was the best way to explain. During their meeting, they have decided that it was best for Nebula and the rest of the Avengers if she just stayed here in 2018 with some others. They didn’t want to risk letting Thanos know they were from the future. If everything went according to the plan and if they were lucky enough, they might not have to deal with Thanos and his entire army.

 

“Well...here’s the thing,” Robert said. “Originally, Rhodey and you went to Morag to retrieve the Power Stone. That was pretty easy but...somehow, your memories were entangled with 2014 Nebula, and...long story short, 2014 Thanos found out. And...he ended up coming to 2023 and the Avengers had to fight him and his army.”

 

“So you don’t want me to go? So I don’t ruin the plan?”

 

 “That’s not what I said--” Robert tried to explain but it was too late.

 

“Thank you for your input,” Nebula said coldly. Then, she took out a metal piece from the side of her head. “This should do. My past self won’t notice a thing even I walked towards her. I’m going with them to Morag. I _exactly_ know what to do and I’ve been there before. If anything goes wrong because of _me_ , I’ll deal with it. I’m NOT going to sit around here and wait.”

 

No one opposed Nebula’s decision. Robert scratched back of his head and walked up to Nebula.

 

“I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings,” Robert said. “I was trying to fix all the mistakes happened in the film, and I didn’t think that it would be unfair for you to stay here and watch. If it weren’t for you, the Avengers would never have found Thanos at Garden in the first place. Sometimes you can’t outrun the inevitable. It wasn’t your fault. I’m sorry.”

 

Robert held out his hand and Nebula stared down at it for a few seconds. Then she took it slowly. She looked at Robert, and walked away.

 

“All right, we have a plan,” Steve said. “Six stones, four teams. One shot...Let’s suit up.”

  
  


In  an hour, all the Avengers and the cast were dressed in Quantum suits. For the cast, Robert was given a SHIELD agent’s suit as well as an Iron Man suit (“Only for EMERGENCIES!” Tony emphasized), Evans was wearing Captain America’s suit from 2012 (He also had to dye his hair blonde and shave)  and Hemsworth was wearing one of Thor’s armors. At the end, 11 Avengers were standing by the Quantum Tunnel in identical suits.

 

“This is...awesome!” Tom shouted, looking around the Avengers. He and the cast always worked in front of the green screen, so to be able to actually _see_ the Quantum Tunnel and the suits was phenomenal.

 

“Steve, can I talk to you for a second?” Tony said, pulling Steve to the side.

 

“Sure, Tony.”

 

“...I think this is the time where I give this back to you,” Tony said, pulling out the Captain America’s shield from behind. “It had scratches, so I fixed it.”

 

“Tony, I don’t know…” Steve hesitated. He still wasn’t sure if he deserved that shield.

 

“Why? He made it for you,” Tony said, handing it to him. “This belongs to you.”

 

“Thank you, Tony,” Steve said, smiling.

 

“Will you keep that a little quiet? Didn’t bring one for the whole team.”

 

Steve chuckled. Oh, how he missed Tony’s jokes and talks. He was happy to have him back. And he wasn’t going to lose him this time.

 

The 11 Avengers stepped onto the Quantum Tunnel.

 

“For the first time, we lost,” Steve said, looking around. “We lost friends, we lost family...we lost a part of ourselves. Today, we have a chance to take it all back. You know your teams, you know your missions. Get the stones, get them back. One round trip each. No mistakes. No do-overs. Most of us are going somewhere we know. But it doesn’t mean we should know what to expect. Be careful. Look out for each other. This is the fight of our lives. And we’re gonna win (Tony gave Steve the look). Whatever it takes. Good luck.”

 

“He’s pretty good at that,” Rocket said, impressed with Steve’s little speech.

 

“Right?” Scott agreed.

 

Robert walked up to Tony.

 

“I wish you the best,” Robert said. “...Let’s not die trying this time, shall we?”

 

“...Am I _supposed_ to die now?”

 

“No, but this is the beginning of the end,” Robert said.

 

“I’ll be fine,” Tony said with a laugh. “Just don’t ruin my suit.”

 

Robert smiled and went back to his spot. Steve walked up to Evans and handed his shield.

 

“Here, take this. I think you need it more than me given that where you’re going,” Steve said.

 

“But you just got it,” Evans said. “You deserve to--”

 

“You deserve it as much as I do,” Steve said, smiling. “I’ve seen you leading your Avengers. You’re definitely a leader. That alone qualifies you to become Captain America.”

 

Evans took the shield from Steve, determined.

 

“Is everyone ready?” Tony asked.

 

The other 10 Avengers nodded, putting the helmets on.

 

“Fire up the Tunnel.”

 

Scarlett turned it on, and smiled at the cast.

 

“...See you in a minute,” Scarlett said. “For real this time. 3...2...1…”

 

The Quantum Tunnel opened and sucked 11 Avengers into another dimension. They were soon divided into four teams and exited through different time points.

  
  
  


_New York, 2012_.

 

Robert, Evans, Scott, and Bruce landed in an alley, a few blocks from where six original Avengers were standing.

 

“Alright, we all have our assignments,” Evans said, switching back to his Cap suit. “One stone uptown, the other down. Stay low. Keep an eye on the clock.”

 

2012 Hulk passed them, smashing everything in his way, scaring off the Chitauri. Bruce put his hand on his face, embarrassed.

 

“...Maybe smash things along the way,” Evans added. “If you can. Are you and Hulk still having the thing?”

 

“We’ll see,” Bruce said, heading to the Sanctum Sanctorum.

 

After Bruce left, Robert walked up to Evans, worried.

 

“Wait, I forgot Bruce isn't Professor Hulk yet. How..how are we gonna bring everyone back? He’s the only one who would survive the snap.”

 

“We’ll...figure it out as we go,” Evans said. “Let’s head to the Avengers Tower.”

 

“...I’m in the past with two people from an alternate universe,” Scott said to himself. “None of this makes sense.”

 

“Scott!” Evans called. “You coming?”

 

“Yes, Captain,” Scott said. “I’m coming, Cap! Don’t leave without me!”

 

When they all left, a figure appeared behind them-- _Loki_.

 

“Now that’s something I never heard of,” Loki said.


	8. So I'm coming with you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Robert tries on the Iron Man suit for the first time, while Evans and Scott retrieve the Mind Stone from HYDRA. Three of them encounter Loki and try their best to outrun his tricks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, thank you so so much for all the wonderful comments! I'm glad you guys like the story. I always wanted to a story where MCU cast meets the actors but I never thought I would receive so much support from you guys!
> 
> I hope you guys like the new chapter as well :)

_The Avengers Tower_.

 

Robert, Evans, and Scott arrived in front of the Avengers Tower.

 

“...Looks like everything’s wrapped up here,” Evans said, looking up. There were no signs of Chitauri or portal.

 

“Let me make sure, Cap,” Robert said.

 

He then tapped the arc reactor on his chest and he was soon covered with the Iron Man armor--possibly Mark 50 or one of the latest version of the suit. Robert hoped that Tony would develop Mark 85--the official Iron Man suit used in _Endgame_ soon because it had more blasters and was much lighter than Mark 50. He didn’t want the Final Battle to happen, but his gut was telling him that something was going to go very wrong. Speeding everything up five years got to have some severe consequences. Life couldn’t be this easy.

 

“That’s cool,” Evans said, looking at Robert covered with the suit. “...This is real, right?”

 

“Real as it ever will be,” Robert said. He slowly flew up to the Tower, and saw six Avengers aiming at Loki. He couldn’t believe he was _actually_ flying--he really was, Iron Man. He looked down--he must be several hundreds feet the air, he couldn’t even see Evans and Scott. This was a huge change from green screens and wires behind his back.

 

“Robert? Are you good?” Evans asked through the intercom.

 

“Yeah, I’m good, Cap,” Robert said. “Just enjoying the view up here. Got to Hustle--they got Loki and the scepter. STRIKE team should come up any minute now.”

 

“Heading inside now,” Evans said, running towards the door. Scott shunk and landed on Evans’ shoulder.

 

They went into the lobby, where some of the SHIELD agents gave Evans--Steve a look.

 

“Captain,” one of them called. Evans turned around, looking casual. “Thought you were up there with the other Avengers.”

 

“Oh, I was...running late,” Evans said, smiling. “I’m on my way to coordinate search and rescue.”

 

The agent nodded. Evans quickly got onto the elevator before any of them asked more questions or becomes suspicious.

 

“ ‘Running late?’ Really? That’s the best excuse you can come up with?!” Scott said from Evans’ shoulder.

 

“What other excuse could I have said? They seemed to believe me, that’s all that matters,” Evans said, pressing a floor button.  

 

The elevator started to go up, and after a minute or two, it stopped at the 25th floor.

 

“...There’s no one here,” Scott pointed it out. “Why did we stop here?”

 

“You’ll see,” Evans said, smirking.

 

Now all he had to do was wait.

  
  


Loki watched himself getting caught by the Avengers from a distance. He never thought he would come back here, to 2012, to this moment, but here he was, trying to collect the Infinity Stones. After his ‘death’ on that Asgardian refugee ship, he barely escaped the explosion caused by the Power Stone. He had to leave without checking on Thor, if he made it out alive or not. If it wasn’t for enhancing his illusion, Loki really would’ve died at the hands of Thanos. Loki shuddered. He could still feel the chills down his spine when Thanos cracked his illusion’s neck. That was something he never wanted to experience.

 

Creating a plausible illusion that could actually bleed and die took a lot of energy from Loki himself, so he spent most of time recovering on one of the planets called ‘Hala,’ the home of Kree. As a shapeshifter, it wasn’t difficult for Loki to change into a Kree. Hala was one of the only few planets that did not a war going on or any conflicts, so it became the perfect place for Loki to recover. However, when he saw half of the population started to disintegrate, he _knew_ Thanos succeeded and the Avengers _lost_ .  Luckily, he survived the Snap, but that didn’t mean he was just going to enjoy life. No, he was going to make Thanos pay for what he did to _him_ , and possibly to Thor.

 

But Loki also knew that there was no way for him to simply reverse what Thanos has done. The power of Infinity Stones is greater than any other magic existing in the universe. It didn’t leave Loki with any choice other than going back in time and getting the Infinity Stones himself. He considered the option of stopping by Earth and checking on the Avengers--especially Thor, but he scratched that idea because that took stealing a spaceship and who knew how long it would take from Hala to Earth. Instead, Loki decided to use ancient magic--which included both light _and_ dark (time travel required some sacrifices) and travel back in time. First place he arrived was _New York 2012_.

 

Since Loki had a _terrible_ , possibly the _worst_ reputation both to the world _and_ the Avengers at the moment, it was best for him to hide and most of all, not be seen. So he was hiding in one of the alleyways, a few blocks from the mighty Avengers when literally, four people simply _appeared_ out of thin air. Loki recognized them instantly: Iron Man, Captain America, Bruce Banner...and one shorter man who seemed he had no idea what he was doing. Loki assumed they also, were from the future (with Stark’s technology it wouldn’t be that impossible), until...the unrecognizable man said that two people were from an _alternate universe_ . _Which means...two of four people weren’t actual Avengers_ . Loki ruled the man and Bruce out, because Captain America asked him if he still had trouble with the Hulk...That left him with the answer: _Iron Man and Captain America were people from an alternate universe_. Loki promised himself that under no circumstances he would reveal his identity to anyone in 2012, but this...this was something else.

 

When Loki spotted Stark flying up to the Tower, he narrowed his eyes.

 

  
  
  
  


“...Who are we waiting for?” Scott asked, from Evans’ shoulder.

 

“SHIELD...well actually, HYDRA agents,” Evans answered. “But we didn’t know that yet.”

 

“Seriously, you didn’t?” Scott said. “I mean...weren’t they the number one enemy of SHIELD or something? Like how--”

 

“You’re small, but you’re talking loud,” Evans pointed out, cutting Scott off. The elevator dinged, and when the doors opened, it was full of HYDRA agents, including Sitwell and Rumlow. Evans tried his best to look unconcerned, and got onto the elevator. ‘Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?’--His one of favorite lines of Steve Rogers was stuck in his throat, but he swallowed it, knowing probably he didn’t have what it takes to take out high skilled agents in an elevator like his character did.

 

“Captain. I thought you were coordinating search and rescue?” Sitwell asked, looking over at Evans, suspiciously.

 

“Change of plans,” Evans said.

 

“Hey, Cap,” Rumlow said.

 

“Rumlow,” Evans said, remembering shooting the scene two years ago. He noticed every agent had his guard up. “I just got a call from the Secretary. I’m gonna be running point on the scepter.”

 

“Sir? I don’t understand,” Sitwell said.

 

“We got word there may be an attempt to steal it,” Evans said.

 

“Sorry, Cap,” Rumlow said. “I can’t give you the scepter.”

 

“I’m gonna have to call the Director,” Sitwell said.

 

“That’s okay,” Evans said. “Trust me.”

 

Evans then leaned over and whispered “Hail Hydra” into Sitwell’s ear.

 

Every HYDRA Agent seemed surprised and didn’t say anything. When the elevator door opened, Evans walked out with the scepter in his hand, and he smirked. When the doors closed and HYDRA agents were out of their reach, Scott clapped.

 

“That was brilliant,” Scott said. “Captain America! A HYDRA agent? Who would’ve thought?”

 

“Robert, I got the scepter,” Evans said through the intercom. “I’ll head to the lobby.”

 

“Did anyone notice?” Robert said, still from the air.

 

“No,” Evans said. “Did the HYDRA trick and everything was fine.”

 

“I’m impressed, Dorito,” Robert said. “Guess you’re America’s ass after all.”

 

Evans chuckled at his two nicknames.

 

“What can I say? I got a great ass,” Evans said, laughing. “I’m taking the stairs now.”

 

“...What did your Tony ask? Actually, never mind. I don’t want to know,” Scott said.

 

Evans purposely got off at 10th floor--so he wouldn’t run into his, or Steve’s past self again. If he was remembering it right, past Steve was on the 14th floor. That gave Evans four floors of gap between past Steve and himself. But when he looked up, there was a different figure--other than past Steve--standing a few feet from him. _Loki_.

 

Evans couldn’t believe what he was seeing--he _knew_ Loki was already caught by the Avengers and didn’t escape from them. He also noticed Loki did not have bruises he had in 2012.

 

“How--how did you escape, Loki?” Evans said, putting his shield up and tightening his grip on the scepter. _He was not going to give it away_.

 

“Oh, please. We both know you are _not_ from this world, Captain, ” Loki said, laughing. Evans startled at his comment. He became more alarmed-- _How does he know about that?_ “Neither am I. I’m from the year 2018.”

 

“...Nice try,” Evans said. “Loki was killed by Thanos. There’s no way he could be alive.”

 

“You underestimate me--”

 

Loki’s words were cut off by someone blasting through the window and punching Loki in the face.

  
  
  
  
  


Robert was flying up in the air, around the Avengers Tower. Although it was not Mark 85, the suit Tony gave him was incredible--it had multiple blasters, a shield, and a thruster--everything he saw or did in _Infinity War_. He never thought in million years, he would actually try on the Iron Man suit, especially one of the most recent ones.

 

But then, FRIDAY alerted Robert.

 

“Boss, there’s a breach on the 10th floor of the Tower,” the A.I. said. God, Robert loved when FRIDAY actually called him ‘Boss.’ It was quite satisfying.

 

“What do you mean ‘breach?’ We closed the portal already,” Robert responded.

 

“There’s an unexpected figure spotted,” FRIDAY said. “He also seems from a different timeline.”

 

FRIDAY then showed Robert the image of-- _Loki_. He had no idea why Loki, probably from the future, was doing here, but that only meant trouble for his dear Captain America.

 

“Alright, what’s the best way to attack Rock of Ages, FRIDAY?” Robert asked, preparing for any kind of attack.

 

“You have a plan,” FRIDAY said casually. “...Attack.”

 

Robert smirked at the A.I.’s humor. Tony really made his A.I.s just like him.

 

“Well, here goes nothing,” Robert said, blasting through the 10th floor and hitting Loki unlike past Tony couldn’t do in 2012.

 

“I don’t think so,” Robert said, after landing.  He then walked over to Evans and Scott. Robert aimed his blasters against Loki, who was slowly standing up.

 

“Ah, Stark from another universe,” Loki said. “Honestly, you could pass as Tony Stark himself if I didn’t overhear your little conversation in the alley.”

 

“Well, I _am_ Tony Stark,” Robert said confidently.

 

“I’m going to need that scepter,” Loki said. “I’m not going to hand one of the Infinity Stones to two mortals who are from a different universe.”

 

“Okay, not happening, Reindeer Games,” Robert said. “Guess what? We, are not gonna give out an Infinity Stone to _you_ \--god of mischief.”

 

“But I already have the Tesseract,” Loki said, displaying the Tesseract on his hand. “You may pretend to be Iron Man and Captain America, but you sure can’t outrun the power of Infinity Stone.

 

“Leave that here!” Evans shouted. “Steve and Tony went to 1970--”

 

Evans then realized what he just did. He just revealed that Robert and he were really from an alternate universe. He shook his head. He couldn’t believe he just fell for one of Loki’s tricks.

 

“Hmm, thank you for your confirmation,” Loki said, laughing. The Tesseract dissolved from his hand. Evans then knew that was a fake, a hologram that Loki created to make Evans tell the truth.

 

“I don’t trust you,” Loki said. “So I’m coming with you.”

 

“No,” Robert and Evans said at the same time.

 

“We still believe 2018 Loki is dead,” Evans said firmly.

 

“You’re wrong, Captain,” Loki said. “How many times have I faked my own death before? Do you really think I actually died at the hands of Mad Titan?”

 

“But in the film--”

 

“Humans can be deceiving and often wrong,” Loki said.

 

“Well--either way, you are _not_ coming with us,” Robert said. All three of them--Evans, Scott and Robert switched into Quantum suits. “So have a nice time being stuck here in 2012 where everyone thinks you’re a criminal.”

  
“Good luck with that,” Loki said, but from Robert’s behind. “I told you, Stark. Humans can be often _wrong_. Before he could realize what happened, four of them were in the Quantum Realm, traveling back to the year 2018.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the Russo brothers confirmed that Loki was dead, but I never accepted the fact that Loki, who faked his death multiple times, god of mischief, simply died by hands of Thanos. So I decided to change a bit and say Loki was alive all this time. I hope you guys are okay with changing Loki's fate.


	9. For your son

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thor and Rocket arrive at Asgard in 2013. There, they run into some familiar (and strange) faces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly I can't believe all the support & love you guys are giving me for this story!  
> Thank you so much :)  
> Love you guys 3000!!

_Asgard, 2013_.

 

Thor and Rocket landed in the middle of Asgard. They changed back to their normal suits. Thor looked around and saw the familiar golden walls and pillars. This was how Asgard once has been--only to be destroyed a few years later, by none other than Thor himself. Thor felt the guilt coming up, right before Rocket snapped him out of it.

 

“Hey, you! What are you staring it at? Let’s take cover,” Rocket said.

 

Both hid behind one of the pillars, just in case some soldiers or Asgardians came in their way. They saw one of the doors opened, and Jane Foster appeared--asking for pants. When the door closed, Rocket turned to Thor.

 

“Alright, here’s the deal, Thor,” Rocket said holding up a silver metal device. “You’re gonna charm her and I’m gonna poke her with this thing and extract the Reality Stone and get gone, lickety-split.”

 

“B-but I haven’t talked to Jane in years,” Thor said, cleary hesitant. He still remembered the time Jane dumped him in a restaurant. She was cold and clear about the breakup and didn’t even give him a chance to explain or make it up. He did not want to relive that moment, although this Jane was from the past and technically that tragic (and pathetic) breakup hasn’t happened yet. “And my hair is all messed up. She’ll know I’m not the Thor she knows right away.”

 

“Well, you look much better _now_ , so figure out something!” Rocket said. “I’m sure she’ll definitely fall for your looks in seconds. A few seconds, that’s all I need to distract her. If you got a better idea--”

 

Rocket’s words were cut off by Thor, because several figures, all ladies, appeared in the hallway. Thor couldn’t take his eyes off from the woman in the very front: _His mother._ Oh, how much he had missed her since...her death. Which was...today. She was going to die today, at the hands of Malekith. Maybe he could save her this time around. He knew time travel didn’t work that way, but at least...she would be alive and happy in this timeline.

 

“Who’s the fancy broad?” Rocket asked.

 

“It’s my Mother,” Thor responded, still not taking eyes off of her. “...She dies today.”

 

“Oh. That’s today?”

 

Thor looked down at his feet. He had no family left--both of his parents, and his only brother were all deceased, two of them killed by someone else. Yes, if their plan of Time Heist or whatever succeeds, maybe all the dusted people will come back. Tony will have his Spiderson back, and Steve will have his best friend Bucky back...but Thor...he knew he wouldn't have Loki back. Loki was killed in front of his eyes, by Thanos. He died way before the Snap happened, and while the Infinity Stones held excessive amount of power, he didn’t think it could bring non-snapped people back to life. _So, if then, why was he here?_ Because he was a part of the Avengers--Earth’s mightiest heroes? But the Avengers broke up three years ago when Iron Man and Captain America disagreed on Sokovia Accords. Thor realized he had nowhere to go--or belong. The only place he did was Asgard and with Loki, but they were both gone--

 

No, not yet. Neither Asgard or Loki was gone yet. They were both here, in 2013. If Thor took Loki with him…

 

“Hey, what are you thinking? We ain’t got that much time!” Rocket nearly yelled.

 

“N-nothing,” Thor said.

 

At that time, a figure appeared in front of them--wrapped in the blue light. The figure looked _exactly_ like Loki, but with short brown hair in a t-shirt and a pair of jeans. He looked _very_ confused then he looked up at Thor.

 

“...Chris?”

 

“Loki?”

 

When he called Thor ‘Chris,’ both Thor and Rocket knew this wasn’t Loki. As the familiar blue light had told them, this was probably Loki’s counterpart, an actor who _played_ Loki like the other Avengers cast members.

 

“...Are we on _Endgame_ set? But I was just in London a few seconds ago--” the figure got up, and looked around.

 

“Uh...No, you are actually on Asgard,” Thor said. “You must be..Loki’s...actor? You know Chris, right? Hemsworth?”

 

Loki’s counterpart laughed.

 

“Oh, Chris, what prank is this?” he asked. “I mean--this really looks like Asgard, well done. But please, what’s the trick?”

 

“...He really doesn’t know what’s going on, does he?” Rocket asked to Thor. The counterpart turned to Rocket and almost jumped. _That is a raccoon_. The counterpart seemed to recognize Rocket, but still seemed surprised.

 

“Okay, so you don’t believe me,” Thor said. “How’s this?”

 

Thor lifted his Stormbreaker with one hand, and there was soon blue sparks of lightning around the weapon.

 

“Look, I know all of this is very, very confusing,” Thor said. “But I’m not Chris Hemsworth. He’s with Rhodey in Morag retrieving the Power Stone. You will meet him soon enough if you come with us.”

 

“You really are Thor, aren’t you?” Loki’s counterpart said, frowning. “I’m...in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.”

 

Both Thor and Rocket nodded, grateful that he finally seemed to understand a bit. They then explained how six original Avengers cast were already in the same universe, as well as Peter Parker’s counterpart, Tom Holland. After the long explanation, he looked much more relieved that he was not the only one who was stuck in the MCU.

 

“So...what’s your name?” Thor asked.

 

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry. Tom Hiddleston,” Tom said, reaching out his hand to Thor. Thor took it, a bit taken aback by Tom’s politeness. He also noticed Tom had same British accent as the other Tom--Stark’s son.

 

“That’s funny. Stark’s son’s name is Tom as well,” Thor said.

 

“Ah, Tom Holland? Yes, we both have the same name. Same initials, as well,” Tom said.

 

“So you have two people named Chris and two people named Tom? Wow that must be confusing.”

 

“We got used to that,” Tom said. “We actually have one more Chris--”

 

“Shh!” Rocket silenced Tom when a few soldiers appeared in the hallway. When they were out of sight, he turned to Thor and Tom. “Okay, it looks like we can’t be just hiding out here. _I_ will go to the girl and suck out the Reality Stone, so you two stay here, okay?”

 

With that, Rocket headed to the room where Jane was staying in. Thor kept looking towards the direction Frigga went and slowly made his way towards her room. Tom noticed Thor sneaking out and called him, but Thor kept going. Tom desperately followed him--first, to stop him from being seen and second, he didn’t want to be stuck in Asgard- _-the actual Asgard_ \--alone.

 

“Thor! Thor, where are you going?”

 

Thor only stopped when he was only a few feet away from Frigga, and hid behind the pillar so she couldn’t see him. Tom stood beside Thor, trying his best not to make any noise.

 

“My ladies, I’ll see you later. Go on,” Frigga said to several ladies who were following her. When they left, Frigga suddenly came behind the pillar Thor and Tom was hiding and basically scared the heck out of them.

 

“Ahh!” Thor and Tom shouted.

 

“What are you two doing out here?” Frigga asked. “Loki, how did you even pass the guards?”

 

Tom just looked at Thor. He had absolutely no idea what to say. This was Frigga--Thor and Loki’s mother. He wasn’t sure if he should pretend if he was Loki who just escaped prison or explain he was actually not Loki, someone who just looked _very much_ like him. Neither option sounded plausible.

 

“Uh...well--I let him out to go for a walk….” Thor said, stuttering. Tom glared at Thor-- _Oh, so he’s gonna make him look like I’m actually Loki? That’s convenient._

 

Frigga gave Tom a _look_ \--the look that even made Tom sweat even though he actually wasn’t Loki.

 

“What happened to your hair _and_ eye?” Frigga asked, looking at Thor closely. She put her hand on Thor’s face.

 

“Oh, hair...I chopped it off because the weather was too hot,” Thor said. “And for the eye...That’s...you remember the Battle of Haroquin? When I got hit in the face with a broadsword?”

 

“It looks like you decided to adopt Misgardian fashion,” Frigga said to Tom.

 

“Ah, well...I-I thought it was nice,” Tom said, trying his best to talk like Loki. He gave her an awkward smile.

 

Frigga looked at her (supposedly) two sons.

 

“You’re not Thor and Loki I know, are you?” Friggaa asked, already knowing the answer.

 

Both Thor and Tom panicked. _She knows_.

 

“Yes, we are,” Thor said quickly. He smiled at her to make it more believable.

 

“The future hasn’t been kind to you, has it?”

 

“I didn’t say I was from the future,” Thor answered, trying his best to hide his surprise.

 

“I was raised by witches, boy,” Frigga said. “I see with more than eyes, you know that.”

 

And that was more than enough to break Thor.

 

“I am totally, totally from the future!” Thor said, trying to hold back tears. I _t’s been so long...since he last saw his mother_.  

 

“Yes, you are,” Frigga said, smiling.

 

“I...We...really need to talk to you,” Thor said, eyeing Tom. Tom nodded, now trying to act like Loki from the future.

 

“We can talk,” Frigga said, hugging both Thor and Tom. It was quite unexpected for Tom, but he enjoyed it because he knew Loki missed his mother terribly from the day she passed away. At that moment, he _became_ Loki Friggason.

  
  
  
  
  


“...His head was over there...His body over there...What was the point? I was too late,” Thor said, staring at his feet on Frigga’s bed. “I was just standing there. Some idiot with an axe.”

 

“You are no idiot,” Frigga said. “You’re here, aren’t you? Seeking counsel from the wisest person in Asgard.”

 

“I guess, yeah,” Thor nodded.

 

“Idiot? No. A failure? Absolutely,” Frigga said, sitting down next to Thor.

 

“That’s a bit harsh,” Thor said.

 

“You do know what makes you? Just like everyone else,” Frigga said.

 

“I’m not supposed to be like everyone else, am I?” Thor asked--more to himself. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, he was always the ‘Golden Child’ of Odin (given Hela was insane and Loki was considered an outsider) and raised to be special. He was almost destined to be the next king of Asgard and he did become the king. Although he remained humble most of the times, he never thought he was same as everybody else--he always had a responsibility or a duty. He was the King of Asgard, he wasn’t _supposed_ to fail or lose. He was _supposed_ to be a hero--the hero who always wins.

 

“Everyone fails at who they are supposed to be, Thor,” Frigga said. “The measure of a person, of a hero, is how well they succeed at who they are, not who they are _supposed_ to be.”

 

Frigga hugged Thor tightly.

 

“I really missed you, Mum,” Thor said, hugging her back.

 

Tom looked at Frigga and Thor--he finally accepted the fact that he really was, in Marvel Cinematic Universe. He didn’t want to believe it, but everything was _so_ real--especially Rocket. There was no way they could just bring a CGI character to life. Knowing what happened in _Avengers: Endgame_ , Tom felt bad for Thor. He really lost everyone--including Loki in Infinity War, and not being able to avenge him was probably the biggest regret Thor had.

 

“...And you...you said you were from a different universe?” Frigga asked, walking up to Tom.

 

“Yes, ma’am,” Tom said. “I know it’s complicated, but I _play_ Loki in films.”

 

“I could tell you weren’t Loki,” Frigga said. “Your eyes do not reflect the pain he went through these years.” She put her hand on Tom’s face, just like she did with Thor.

 

“I may not be Loki, but I _do_ understand him,” Tom said. “He’s...he’s just misunderstood at times. He _does_ have a good heart.”

 

Frigga smiled at Tom.

 

“I’m glad you understand my son,” Frigga said.

 

“Mum, I have to tell you something,” Thor said, getting up.

 

“No, son. You don’t,” Frigga said, already knowing what it’s going to be. “You’re here to repair your future, not mine.”

 

“But this _is_ your future,” Thor argued.

 

“It’s none of your business,” Frigga said.

 

At that moment, the door opened, and Rocket came in...with _Heimdall_.

 

“Your Highness, I noticed a time breach in Asgard,” Heimdall said.

 

Thor and Tom looked at each other. _Oh...shit_.

 

“Well, that’s us,” Rocket said casually. “You must be...Mom. I got the thing. Come on, we got to move.”

 

Heimdall looked at Rocket both curiously and surprisingly.

 

“You’re...a rabbit _and_ you can talk,” Heimdall said.

 

“ _For gods sake_ , I’m NOT a rabbit,” Rocket said.

 

“Heimdall, I’m taking care of the breach,” Frigga said. “It will be over shortly.”

 

Heimdall looked at Thor, Tom, and Rocket (again) and nodded.

 

“...It’s good to see you, Your Majesty...my King,” Heimdall said, bowing to Thor. “I hope future becomes better for you.”

 

“....Good to see you, my friend,” Thor said, smiling slightly. _Of course Heimdall knows who he is_. Seeing his best friend alive one last time was all that mattered.

 

“And I never expected to see another version of Loki in my life,” Heimdall said to Tom.

 

Tom just simply smiled back.

 

“Life’s filled with full of surprises,” Tom said.

 

He then turned to Frigga.

 

“I know you don’t want me to tell you, but you die _today_ ,” Tom said. “You get killed by a dark elf named Malekith. You die protecting Jane and the Aether...I know everyone can’t live forever. Some people have to leave their life behind early. I know that. But...would you consider changing your fate?”

 

“I--” Frigga tried to say no.

 

“...For Loki,” Tom said. “For your son. He identifies himself as Loki _Friggason_. Even though he’s adopted, you were his Mother. So please. As your son from an alternate universe, I beg you, Mother.”

 

As soon as Tom brought Loki up and called her _Mother--_ Frigga couldn’t resist any longer.

 

“Yes, I will...my son,” Frigga said, tearing up.

 

“Please make sure she doesn’t die today,” Thor said to Heimdall.

 

“With everything I have, I promise you, Your Majesty,” Heimdall said.

 

Frigga hugged both Thor and Tom at the same time.

 

“This was a gift,” Frigga said. “And Thor, you’re going to be the man you’re meant to be.”

 

“I love you, Mum,” Thor said.

 

“I love you, Mother,” Tom said.

 

“I love you, my sons,” Frigga said.

 

“Come on, we gotta go,” Rocket said, rushing Thor and Tom.

 

“Goodbye,” Frigga whispered.

 

“3...2…” Rocket was one second away from changing into his Quantum Suit.

 

“No, wait!” Thor stopped him, and held out his hand.

 

“Wh-what am I looking at?” Rocket asked, confused.

 

“Oh, sometimes it takes a second,” Frigga said.

 

Then, Mjolnir was summoned into Thor’s hand, just like the old times. Now Thor had Mjolnir _and_ Strombreaker in his both hands.

 

“I’m still worthy,” Thor said, laughing.

 

“Oh, boy,” Rocket shook his head.

 

“Goodbye, Mum,” Thor said.

 

“Goodbye,” Frigga said.

 

Rocket and Thor changed into Quantum Suit--and Tom grabbed onto Thor. Within seconds, three of them were gone from sight.

  
  
  


_Morag, 2014_.

 

“This...was...a mistake….,” Hemsworth was barely breathing. He had small cuts on his face. He looked up. There were soldiers surrounding him, Rhodey, and Nebula. One of the soldiers hit him in the face and--he blacked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of you guys wanted Tom Hiddleston in story, so here he is! I hope you guys liked it!


	10. It is up to me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nebula, Hemsworth, and Rhodey arrive in 2014 Morag to retrieve the Power Stone. However...things go very, very wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to put all the Morag events into one chapter, but the it got soooo long so I had to split into two. This chapter is probably one of the longest ones I wrote and the most important ones because things begin go downwards from this point on. 
> 
> I hope you guys like some changes I made to the canon. 
> 
> Thank you for your love & support! :)

_ Morag, 2014 _ . 

 

Nebula, Hemsworth, and Rhodey landed on Morag with a thud. 

 

“Okay..so..uhh...We just wait around for this Quill guy to show up and then he leads us to the Power Stone, is that it?” Rhodey asked, standing up. 

 

“Yes,” Hemsworth and Nebula said at the same time. They looked at each other. 

 

“Let’s take cover,” Nebula said, annoyed that Hemsworth apparently knew what was going to happen as well. “We’re not the only ones in 2014 looking for the stones.” 

 

“Wait a minute, what are you talking about right now? Who’s looking for these stones?” Rhodey asked, confused and surprised. 

 

“My father, my sister...and me,” Nebula said. 

 

“And you? Where are you right now?” Rhodey asked Nebula. 

 

“...Fighting and training for battle probably,” Nebula said. “Killing enemies--that’s all I’ve known since Thanos took me in.”

 

Nebula looked down--trying to remember what her life was like before Thanos forcibly took her in. God, she couldn’t even remember when she left home--she was probably young, or younger than Gamora was when Thanos took her from her home planet. Whatever memories she had of her home, they were gone--like her. 

 

“So...should we take cover?” Hemsworth asked, trying his best to break the awkward silence. “Quill’s gonna be here any second, with his...dancing.” 

 

Three of them hid behind rocks, and waited for Peter Quill to show up. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


 2014 Nebula and Gamora were fighting intergalactic creatures as a part of their training. While Nebula managed to kill several of them one to her right threw a grenade towards her, causing her to fall down and lose her focus. Gamora had to intervene, practically saving Nebula’s life. 

 

“Your welcome,” Gamora said, holding out a hand to help Nebula up. However, Nebula refused to take it.

 

“I didn’t ask for your help,” Nebula said with a grunt. 

 

“And yet, you always need it,” Gamora said. “Get up. Father wants us back on the ship.”

 

“Why?” Nebula asked. 

 

“He’s found an Infinity Stone,” Gamora said. 

 

Gamora and Nebula came up to the ship. They pulled up a hologram of a map. 

 

“Where?” Nebula asked. 

 

“On a planet called Morag,” Gamora responded. 

 

“Father’s plan is finally in motion,” Nebula said, excited. 

 

“One stone isn’t six, Nebula,” Gamora reminded her. 

 

“It’s a start,” Nebula argued. 

 

“If he gets all of them…” Gamora said.

 

2014 Thanos arrived at the ship. Gamora and Nebula went up to greet him. 

 

“Ronan’s located the Power Stone,” Thanos said, taking off his helmet. “I’m dispatching you to his ship.” 

 

“He won’t like that,” Gamora said. 

 

“His alternative is death, then,” Thanos said, wiping his sword. “Ronan’s obsession clouds his judgement.”

 

“We will not fail you, Father,” Nebula said, looking up to him. 

 

“No, you won’t.”

 

“I swear...I will make you proud,” Nebula said, kneeling in front of Thanos. When she looked up again, there was determination on her face. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Nebula, Hemsworth, and Rhodey were watching Peter Quill dance to (supposedly) “Come And Get Your Love” for the last minute or two. Hemsworth was the only one who laughed at Quill’s dancing and smiled at him having his fun. 

 

“...So he’s an idiot?” Rhodey asked Nebula, looking done with his life. 

 

“...Yeah,” Nebula nodded. 

 

“Oh, guys, c’mon,” Hemsworth said. “He’s jamming out.”

 

“You know how it looks  _ stupid  _ when you dance with your headphones on, right?” Rhodey said to Hemsworth. “Guess you’re an idiot,too.” 

 

“I’m not a--”

 

Rhodey and Nebula just silently got up and Rhodey knocked Quill out from behind in seconds. Hemsworth quickly followed them, not wanting to be left behind on this dark planet. Nebula was looking through Quill’s stuff and picked out one of his tools. 

 

“What’s that?” Rhodey asked. 

 

“The tool of a thief,” Nebula said. 

 

Before they headed for the temple, Hemsworth grabbed another tool--the device that could pull out the Stone. Three of them went up to the temple and Nebula opened the doors easily with the tool. When she tried to just walk in, Rhodey stopped her. 

 

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa...This is the part where spikes come out with skeletons on the end and everything,” Rhodey said, looking out for any traps. 

 

“What are you talking about?” Nebula asked, about to call Rhodey stupid as well. 

 

“When you break into a place called the temple of the Power Stone, there’s gonna be a bunch of boobytraps--”

 

“No, there won’t buddy,” Hemsworth said confidently. 

 

He simply walked into the temple, and Nebula and Rhodey followed. Nebula walked up to the Power Stone and was about to put her metal hand through the force field, only to be stopped by Hemsworth. He caught her hand inches away from the field. 

 

“What  _ are  _ you doing?” Nebula asked. 

 

“I appreciate the effort and dedication, but there’s actually  _ another  _ way,” Hemsworth said. He then pulled out the device and set it on the ground. When he turned on the switch, the device pulled the Power Stone out of the force field, without a single scratch. 

 

“Ah, see? Much better,” Hemsworth said, handing the Orb to Nebula. Nebula took it, but she glared at Hemsworth. 

 

“Wh-what did I do?” Hemsworth asked. He didn’t get his answer. 

 

“Sync up,” Rhodey said. Three of them just changed into their Quantum Suits--right when Korath and his soldiers arrived at the door. 

 

“If you move, you die,” Korath said. 

 

Hemsworth stared at Rhodey and Nebula. _ Oh, this was bad...like really bad... _ His instincts were telling him so. They had to get out of here soon.  _ Very soon _ . 

 

“Hmm, I see that you already retrieved the Orb for me,” Korath said. A few of his soldiers followed him and surrounded Hemsworth, Nebula, and Rhodey. When he tried to take the Orb away from Nebula, she pulled it back. 

 

“This is...for my father,” Nebula said. “I’m not handing it over to you.” 

 

Rhodey and Hemsworth turned to her and frowned at her.  _ Now, what did she just say? _

 

“Ronan is in charge of retrieving the Orb,” Korath said. “Therefore, you follow his orders.” 

 

“No, I follow Father’s orders,” Nebula said, looking at the Orb. “So how about you lead us to Ronan’s ship? That way we get a ride back to Father’s ship, and Ronan gets the Orb.” 

 

Korath growled at Nebula but seemed to accept the deal. The soldiers stepped aside from Rhodey and Hemsworth as well. The pair was still extremely confused about Nebula’s actions.  _ Didn’t she hate Thanos? Why is she saying she’s with Thanos?  Did 2014 Nebula switch places with 2018 Nebula at some point? _

 

“After you,” Korath said. 

 

Without much choice, Hemsworth and Rhodey walked with Nebula to Korath’s ship. When they were far enough away from Korath and his soldiers, Hemsworth whispered in Nebula’s ear. 

 

“What  _ are  _ you thinking?!”

 

“If we moved or tried anything else, he was going to kill us at the spot,” Nebula whispered back. “At least this way we still have the Orb in our hands.” 

 

“Yeah, but not for long,” Rhodey whispered, looking back. “If this keeps going, we will be delivering the Orb straight to Ronan and Thanos! And they will find out soon enough that you are not the Nebula they know.” 

 

“I know,” Nebula said. “But we don’t have much choice here.” 

 

So three of them boarded Korath’s ship. With his soldiers watching, the ship flew out of Morag and into space. Hemsworth looked at the voids of space and the planet Morag with both surprise and horror. He never, ever thought he would actually go to outer space. Plus, he was actually in an alien spaceship--something you don’t experience every day. The ship soon arrived at a much, much bigger one. 

 

“Ronan, we bring the Orb to you,” Korath said. 

 

Nebula, Hemsworth, and Rhodey walked up to Ronan and Hemsworth almost screamed at his marked blue face. God, there was a significant difference between seeing it on screen  _ and  _ seeing it in person. He noted that when or now  _ if _ he goes back to his own world, that he would improve CGI of the MCU movies. 

 

“I didn’t know you were bringing company,” Ronan said, looking at three new faces. “Ah, Thanos’ daughter. Thought you never worked with anyone other than your sister.”

 

“Time to change,” Nebula said. “I’m not handing over the Orb to  _ you _ , Ronan. It belongs to someone else.” 

 

“That choice isn’t up to you to make,” Ronan said, stepping forward. 

 

“No,” a voice said behind them. Nebula  _ froze _ . She would recognize that voice  _ anywhere _ . It couldn’t be. In her memory, he was still back in his ship. But that voice clearly belonged to one person in the entire universe. “It is up to me.”  _ Thanos _ . Nebula slowly turned around and found 2014 Thanos walking up to her and Ronan with 2014 Gamora and... _ Nebula _ . 

 

_ Oh shit _ .  _ We’re fucked _ . Hemsworth thought.  _ Like, really, really fucked. _


	11. I am...inevitable

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanos learns his potential future through 2018 Nebula's memory files. Nebula, Hemsworth, and Rhodey attempt to escape from Thanos' grasp before he kills them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the other half !
> 
> Thank you :)

"I’ll take them from here,” Thanos said, looking straight at Nebula, Hemsworth, and Rhodey. “The Orb, as well.”

 

While all three knew following Thanos to his ship basically meant death, they did _not_ dare to try to disappear before he noticed anything. All of them knew he would kill them before they reached the Quantum Realm.

 

Now three silently walked behind Thanos, followed by Gamora and Nebula. 2014 Nebula was looking at her future self with confusion but also hatred. When three of them got onto Thanos’ ship, they were thrown to the ground, the Orb slipping from Nebula’s and into Thanos’ hands.

 

“I am grateful for retrieving it for me,” Thanos said. “But who are you--especially you, who are impersonating my daughter?”

 

“I am _not_ \--your daughter,” Nebula said, groaning. “I never was, and I _never_ will be.”

 

Thanos stared at future Nebula for seconds, and he turned to Ebony Maw.

 

“Take her to my lab,” Thanos commanded. “And lock these two up.”

 

“This...was...a mistake ...,” Hemsworth was barely breathing. He had small cuts on his face. He looked up. There were soldiers surrounding him, Rhodey, and Nebula. One of the soldiers hit him in the face and--he blacked out.

 

Maw tied Nebula’s hands and feet and carried her away, while Gamora and past Nebula grabbed Hemsworth and Rhodey and took them down to the prison. The soldiers who were guarding the prison pushed two into a cell. When Hemsworth woke up again, he felt stings from the side of his face. When he touched it, drops of blood came off.

 

“You alright?” Rhodey asked.

 

“Yeah, I think I just fainted for a bit,” Hemsworth said.

 

“...What do we do now?”

 

“I mean, we could go back now, but we will be without the Orb,” Hemsworth said. “And we’re not leaving Nebula back in her worst nightmare again.”

 

“Guess we would have to wait then.”

  
  
  
  
  
  


Thanos took a wire from the above and plugged into Nebula’s head.

 

“Run diagnostics,” Thanos ordered to Maw. “Show me her memory file.”

 

Maw did as he was told. After a minute or two, he looked up from the screen.

 

“Sire, the files appear entangled,” Maw said. “This duplicate carries a time stamp...from four years in the future.”

 

Thanos stared down at Nebula, who was trying her best to escape from whatever was holding her.

 

“...From the future…” Thanos said. “Search her memories for Infinity Stones.”

 

A hologram of the Avengers and the cast having a meeting was projected from Nebula’s left eye.

 

_“Okay so the ‘how’ works. Now we gotta figure out the ‘when’ and the ‘where.’ Almost all of us has had an encounter with at least one of the six Infinity Stones.”_

 

_“Well I’d substitute the word encounter for damn well near been killed by one of the six Infinity Stones.”_

 

“...Freeze image,” Thanos said.

 

After looking at the image of a group of people, Thanos recognized who they were.

 

“...Terrans,” Gamora said.

 

“ _Avengers_ ,” Thanos corrected her. “Unruly wrenches.”

 

“They are better than you’ll ever be,” Nebula said, clenching her teeth.

 

“...Do you think you’ll escape my grasp?” Thanos asked, laughing. “Scan more of her memories. I want to see everything.”

 

“Yes, Sire,” Maw responded.

 

Another hologram played from Nebula’s eye.

 

_“You murdered trillions!”_

 

_“You should be grateful.”_

 

_“Where are the Stones?”_

 

_“Gone. Reduced to atoms.”_

 

_“You used them two days ago.”_

 

_“I used the stones to destroy the stones. It nearly killed me. But the work is done. It always will be. I am inevitable.”_

 

The memory paused.

 

“...What did you do to them?” Gamora asked, wanting to know the answer but on the other hand, dreading it as well.

 

“Nothing. Yet. They're not trying to stop something I'm going to do in our time. They're trying to undo something I've already done in theirs,” Thanos said.

 

“The stones…”

 

“I found them all,” Thanos said proudly. “I won. Tipped the cosmic scales to balance.”

 

Thanos put his hand on Gamora’s face. She immediately knelt down.

 

“This is your future,” Gamora said.

 

“It’s my destiny.”

 

Maw resumed playing the memory.

 

_“My father is many things. A liar is not one of them.”_

 

_“Thank you, Daughter. Perhaps I treated you too harshly…”_

 

Thanos gets beheaded in the memory and Gamora couldn’t hide shock from her face.

 

“And that, is destiny fulfilled,” Thanos said.

 

“Sire, your Daughter…” Maw said, choking Nebula with a chain around her neck. “...is a traitor.”

 

Thanos walked up to her and released the chain. He held her head in his palm.

 

“So...this is how you repay me,” Thanos said.

 

“I don’t owe you a _thing_ ,” Nebula said. She glared at him, and suddenly broke free from the force field that was holding her. “...I’ve been _tortured_ here for many, many years in the _exact_ same way. Whether you believe it or not, I _learned_.”

 

Thanos tried to catch her, but she dodged him and ran out of the lab. Using her guns, she took down several soldiers on her way to the prison. She knew Gamora and 2014 Nebula were coming after her. She didn’t have much time.

 

“Wait!” Gamora yelled at her from behind. Nebula turned around, ready to shoot her. But to her surprise, Gamora wasn’t aiming her gun at her.

 

“...You have to let me go,” Nebula said desperately. “You _know_ you want to stop him.”

 

“...I know,” Gamora whispered so only Nebula can hear her. “...But you forgot something.”

 

Gamora tossed the Orb. Nebula caught it, staring at her with shock.

 

“... _Go_ ,” Gamora said. “...Sister.”

 

Nebula smiled a bit and continued to run.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Nebula arrived at Hemsworth’s and Rhodey’s cell, and immediately shot the guards. She unlocked the door and yelled.

 

“We don’t have much time! Sync up, _now_!”

 

Hemsworth and Rhodey did.

 

“How did you--” Rhodey was about to ask.

 

“Do you have the Power Stone?” Hemsworth asked, cutting him off. _She was here. That’s all that mattered._

 

“Yes! 3..2..1… _Go_!”

 

Within seconds, three of them disappeared from the cell, and were back in the Quantum Realm. As they were disappearing, Gamora and Nebula ran in.

 

“ _No_!” Nebula screamed. But it was too late. They were gone from this time.

 

“...I’m sorry, Nebula,” Gamora said.

 

“ _You_ let them go,” Nebula said. "Do you know what you've done?"

 

“I was just trying to help,” Gamora said.

 

“Thought you were on my side,” Nebula said. “Guess we can’t be Sisters after all.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“....They escaped,” Maw said.

  
“....Don’t worry,” Thanos said with a smile. “I will go after them...the Avengers...I am... _inevitable_.”


	12. So, who are you?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Tony arrive in New Jersey, 1970. While completing their missions, the two of them run into people of their past.

_ New Jersey, 1970 _ . 

 

“Clearly, you weren’t actually born here, right?”

 

Tony asked, looking around the military base. Steve laughed, remembering how he first trained to be a soldier here and became Captain America...that was more than 75 years ago. This was also where he first met Peggy Carter...He suddenly wondered whether Peggy was still here. He knew she was the Director of the SHIELD at the time, so there was a good chance that she was here, in the base. But what if she  _ was  _ here? It wasn’t like he could go meet her or anything. 

 

“The idea of me was,” Steve said, trying to shake the idea of meeting Peggy off. 

 

“Right. Well, imagine you’re SHIELD, running a quasi-fascistic intelligence organization. Where do you hide it?”

 

“In plain sight,” Steve said, looking at an old warehouse. Tony tapped the side of his glasses and figured out that both of their missions were indeed down there.

 

“Let’s go, then,” Tony said. 

 

With fake IDs Tony created, it was a piece of cake for him and Tony to pass the guards and get into the elevator. A black lady looked at the two with both curiosity and surprise. Tony tried his best not to look awkward and pressed the floor buttons. The lady kept looking towards Steve’s direction, so Tony casually covered Steve, so that she wouldn’t notice who he really was. When the elevator dinged, Tony was very glad that he was leaving that claustrophobic space.  

 

“Good luck on your mission, Captain,” Tony said to Steve. 

 

“Good luck on your project, Doctor,” Steve said. 

 

The elevator doors closed and it kept going down. The lady finally came up to Steve. 

 

“You new here?” she asked with a smile. 

 

“...Not exactly,” Steve said, lowering his hat. 

 

The lady stared at Steve for a minute or two. When the elevator dinged again, Steve got out of there as soon as he could. He hoped there weren’t many people who remembered what Steve Rogers looked like. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Tony was down in the basement, looking for the Tesseract. Soon enough, the words ‘Target Acquired’ flashed in front of him through his glasses. Using his Iron fist, Tony forcibly opened the container and grabbed the Tesseract. He then quickly put in the briefcase on the desk next to him. 

 

“...Mission accomplished,” Tony said. 

 

Just as Tony was about to head for the exit, a voice--a  _ familiar  _ voice spoke behind him. 

 

“Arnim, you in here? Arnim? Hey!” 

 

Howard Stark, Tony’s own  _ father _ , was standing in the doorway, only a few feet away from Tony. While it was true that Howard and Tony did not have a good, if any, father-son relationship while Howard was alive, Tony couldn’t help but to feel relieved and happy seeing his dad alive once again. 

 

“The door’s this way, pal,” Howard said, pointing to the exit. “I’m looking for Dr. Zola. Have you seen him?”

 

_ Dr. Arnim Zola _ . The name sounded very familiar to him. He then remembered that Zola was behind HYDRA hiding inside SHIELD--that he was one of the very first members of HYDRA agents infesting inside SHIELD. His fists clenched at the fact that Zola and his father were in fact close--apparently close enough to call him his first name. Tony wondered if Howard knew Zola still had his roots in HYDRA or completely trusted him. He wanted to tell him...wanted to tell him how he was going to die 21 years later, leaving his own son behind....

 

“Yeah, no, Dr. Zol...No, I haven’t seen a soul,” that’s all that came out of Tony’s mouth. 

 

“Pardon me. Do I know you?” Howard asked. 

 

_ Yes, you do. I’m your son--your son who is going to be born this year. _ Words like these screamed inside Tony.

 

“No, sir, I’m a...visitor from MIT,” Tony said, holding up his MIT ID. 

 

“Huh, MIT. Got a name?” Howard asked, seeming quite impressed with Tony. 

 

Tony panicked--he had no idea what his fake name was going to be. He didn’t think in a million years he would run into his own father out of all people.  _ Quick, Tony. Think fast. _

 

“Uh...Howard,” Tony said, immediately regretting his choice.  _ Howard? Am I that dumb? _

 

“Well, that’ll be easy to remember,” Howard said, chuckling. 

 

“Howard...Potts,” Tony said.  _ Sorry, Pep, but I’m borrowing your name for sec.  _

 

“Well, I’m Howard Stark,” Howard said reaching out his hand for a handshake. Tony went in to grab his hand, but ended up pulling his middle finger instead. “Shit. Now don’t pull it.” 

 

“Yeah…”

 

“You look a little green around the gills there, Potts,” Howard said. 

 

_ Oh, you have no idea, Dad. You have no idea who’s in front of you right now.  _

 

“I’m fine. Just, long hours,” Tony said. 

 

“Wanna get some air?”

 

Tony imagined talking with his dad when he was younger. As a child, he wanted to have a normal conversation with Howard, but that never seemed to happen when all he did was yelling at Tony and calling him a huge disappointment to the family. Now Howard was asking  _ him  _ to spend some time with him. Although Howard had no idea that the man in front of him was actually his son in 40 years, it meant something to Tony. 

 

“Hey, Potts!” Howard raised his voice, snapping Tony back to reality. 

 

“Yeah, that would be swell.”

 

Tony was about to leave the room when Howard reminded him to take his briefcase with him. 

 

“Need your briefcase?”

 

Tony took it from Howard, reminding himself how stupid he has been for the last few minutes in front of his father. 

 

“You’re not one of those, are ya, Potts?”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Steve was having trouble finding where Hank Pym was. Yes, he could’ve just asked someone, but then he was worried that the person would recognize him. While it has been 25 years since his disappearance, Steve did not want to risk of exposing his face and his voice to a SHIELD agent. As he was walking down the hallway, he noticed that the same black lady whom he met on the elevator was walking towards him with two guards on her side. 

 

“And you’ve never seen these two men before?” One of the guards asked. 

 

“No, I’ve got an eye for this. The two of them looked fishy.” 

 

“Can you describe them?” the other guard asked. 

 

“Well, one of them had a hippie beard and the other...you’re not gonna believe this. He looked  _ exactly  _ like Captain America from the walls.” 

 

Steve quickly went into the first room on his right and closed the door.  _ So she noticed _ . He still hasn’t found Pym particles yet and the words were going to get out soon that there’s a Captain America impersonator in the facility. Steve had to move fast. After a few minutes, Steve was about to leave the room when he saw an old picture of..himself. But not one of those he took countless times as Captain America or Captain Steve Rogers the War Hero, but one of Steve Rogers before the serum. Steve turned around and saw the bold name on the door: THE DIRECTOR MARGARET CARTER. 

 

This.  _ This was Peggy...his Peggy’s room. _

 

Then, Peggy, who looked the same as Steve remembered in the old days, came in and took a phone call. As the call went on, her face turned from suspicion to shock. Steve took a step forward towards the blinds so he could see her better. What he thought wasn’t possible was happening in front of his eyes. He was watching his best girl. When Peggy finished the phone call she looked up in Steve’s direction. Steve quickly turned away from her and reached for the door. 

 

But it was too late. The light turned on, and Peggy was standing behind him. 

 

“...You know the windows are transparent, right?” Peggy said. 

 

Steve didn’t turn around. It was as if his feet were glued to the ground. He couldn’t move. He never, ever, thought he would hear her voice again. The last time he heard it was in 2014 when he went to visit her in Washington D.C. But this Peggy was different. This was the Peggy Steve remembered. 

 

“...I just got a call from the Security,” Peggy said, walking towards him. “They said one of our employees saw two men who looked suspicious who looked exactly like Steve Rogers.” 

 

Steve stayed silent. But he slowly turned around and faced Peggy. Oh, she looked beautiful as always--it seemed like she didn’t age at all. 

 

“...So, who are you?” Peggy asked, aiming her gun at him. 

 

“I-I am...Steve Rogers,” Steve said. “Peggy...I--I know you don’t believe me. But...I’m from the future.” 

 

“You expect to just believe you are Steve Rogers?  _ My  _ Steve Rogers who was brave enough to jump on a grenade and sacrifice himself so thousands could live?”

 

“...Stork Club, Eight o’clock on the dot, a week from Saturday,” Steve said. 

 

“What?”

 

“That was our date, remember? The one I never made it to because I went down in the Arctic,” Steve said. “Sorry I’m late. But I’m here now--Couldn’t leave my best girl.” 

 

Peggy put her gun down and stared at Steve. 

 

“...Steve?” 

 

Steve nodded, and Peggy just fell in his arms. Steve hugged her tightly, trying to tell himself that this was indeed real. That he really was in 1970 with Peggy Carter. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“...So, flowers and sauerkraut. You got a big date tonight?” Tony asked, getting in the elevator with Howard. 

 

“My wife's expecting. And, uh... Too much time in the office,” Howard said. 

 

_ Oh, you don’t know how much you will spend time in the office after my birth.  _

 

“Congratulations,” Tony said, trying to sound natural. 

 

“Thanks. Hold this, will you?”

 

“Yeah, sure. How far along is she?” Tony asked, feeling a bit obscure that he was asking about his own birth. Tony held the flowers while Howard fix his tie. 

 

“I don't know... uh...She's at the point where she can't stand the sound of my chewing. I guess I'll be eating dinner in the pantry again,” Howard answered. 

 

Tony chuckled. 

 

“My fiance and I...are thinking about having a kid,” Tony said. “We’re hoping for a girl.” 

 

“ A girl would be nice. Less of a chance she'd turn out exactly like me,” Howard said. 

 

Tony frowned. He didn’t know his father thought less of himself. To Tony, Howard was always strict and this powerful being who knew everything. 

 

“What'd be so awful about that?” 

 

“Let's just say that the greater good has rarely outweighed my own self-interests,” Howard said, turning to him. 

 

Tony remembered how selfish he was before he got kidnapped and became Iron Man--oh, how partied almost every day and displayed his wealth to the public on purpose. He only talked with fellow wealthy, educated people and ignored the rest. Including the drinking problem, yes, Tony was just like Howard in many ways. 

 

But that was in the past. 

 

Since 2008, Tony Stark has become a changed man. He was willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good, for the world, and now the universe now. His counterpart--Robert--told him originally he was going to die saving the universe. Maybe, if that was his destiny, that same moment would come and Tony would be ready for it. 

 

The elevator dinged, and when the doors opened, Tony couldn’t hide his shock. None other than Peggy Carter and Steve were standing in front of Howard and Tony. 

 

“Fuck,” Tony and Steve said at the same time. 


	13. My greatest creation is...you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Steve have a chance to catch up with their past and maybe change it a bit for the better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi :)
> 
> First of all, thank you so much for loving this story! It means a lot to me. 
> 
> I also noticed some of you are curious as to why things are happening very differently than the canon, I can't say much but the next chapter will be dealing with the canon divergence & the cast meeting Loki/Tom Hiddleston. So stay tuned!

“...And that’s how I ended up in the past,” Steve explained to Peggy why he came to the past in the first place, including waking up 70 years in the future, the Avengers, Bucky being alive as the Winter Soldier, the Civil War, the Infinity War, and the present. The only part Steve left out was the fact that there was an alternate universe out there with his counterpart. He figured that it would be too confusing and complicated for Peggy to understand. It was a long explanation, but Peggy simply listened to his story and comforted him when emotional parts came up. 

 

“If you take the Tesseract, can you bring everyone back?” Peggy asked. 

 

“To be honest, I don’t know, Peg,” Steve said with a sigh. “If we get all the stones like Thanos did in the first place and snap our fingers...I hope it works, but it’s no guarantee.” 

 

“...You also said you need more Pym particles for your team,” Peggy said. “You do realize the Tesseract and the Pym particles are the most important objects we hold at SHIELD, right?” 

 

“That is the exact reason why I need them,” Steve said turning towards Peggy. “They are the key to reverse everything Thanos has done.” 

 

Peggy stood up from where she was sitting. Without turning around, she asked Steve. 

 

“...Are you doing this for your friend, Bucky Barnes?” 

 

“If I say no, that would be a lie,” Steve said. “But I’m doing this for the world--for the universe. We lost so...much in the last few weeks. The world has crumbled. It is our job as the Avengers to make things right.” 

 

Peggy then turned around and kissed Steve on his forehead. 

 

“...You haven’t changed all these years,” Peggy said, laughing. “You’re still the Steve Rogers I know.” 

 

“Did you expect me to change?” 

 

“People change, Steve,” Peggy said with a sad smile. “Sometimes, for the worse. Anyway, come with me, let’s get you the Pym particles.”

 

Steve and Peggy left the room. Steve looked down, so that people passing by wouldn’t see his face. They waited for the elevator to arrive. And when the doors opened--Steve knew things went wrong. 

 

“Fuck,” Tony and Steve said at the same time. 

 

“...Director Carter,” Howard greeted. “And who is--” 

 

Howard just lost his words. Because he recognized the man in front of him instantly. He was the person Howard missed the most. He was the person Howard tried so hard to find but failed. He was  _ Steve Rogers _ . Steve Rogers--Captain America, the hero, was standing in front of him. Howard noticed he didn’t age at all--possibly the serum was affecting his aging as well. 

 

“..C-captain...Rogers?” Howard said, stuttering.

 

Steve and Peggy got into the elevator quickly before anyone heard Howard. When the elevator doors closed, Howard spoke again. 

 

“So..it’s...really you,” Howard said, looking at Steve up close. “You were..alive.” 

 

“...Howard,” Steve said. There was a moment of silence in the elevator. Tony sighed.  _ Now this was great. Not only he ran into his own father out of all other people, he was in the same elevator as Peggy Carter and Steve.  _ And by Peggy’s looks, Tony knew Steve told her about how he got here to a certain extent. He looked at Steve’s hands and his pockets, and saw that there was nothing. The Pym particles were supposed to be there, but Tony saw both of them empty. 

 

Tony immediately turned to Steve. 

 

“What.were.you.thinking?!” Tony almost screamed at Steve. “I see you don’t even have the Pym particles. While I was retrieving the Tesseract, you went after your girl?” 

 

“The Tesseract? What--” Howard was more surprised that Tony knew Steve and he was not surprised at all when Steve, a dead man, was standing in front of the elevator. 

 

“Okay, first of all, it was by accident, and second, what about you, Tony? You are talking with your own father!” 

 

Howard thought the most shock he had today was meeting Steve Rogers. However, he was wrong. He stared at Tony. This was...his  _ son _ ? But that can’t be. His wife was expecting now, and although he loved spending nights with various girls, he didn’t remember getting any of them pregnant. If he really conceived a child at such a young age, he would have  _ known _ . 

 

Tony and Steve then realized there were also other people in the elevator. Because Steve briefly explained his past (or his future), Peggy was slightly aware of who Tony was, so it wasn’t much of a shock for Steve as it was for Howard. 

 

“...We really fucked this up, didn’t we?” Tony said to Steve, shaking his head. 

 

“Can someone explain what’s going on, please?” Howard asked. 

 

So four of them headed to Howard’s office upstairs. When all four of them were inside, Steve locked the door and covered the windows with blinds. He then listened carefully for any sounds--especially footsteps. 

 

“Steve, what is this? H--how are you alive? You went down in the ice 25 years ago,” Howard said. 

 

“Listen, Howard. You can’t say anything-- _ not even a single word _ \--about us--about Steve Rogers being alive and meeting your son Tony Stark to anyone. You and Peggy are the only ones who can know who we really are. Do you understand?” 

 

“My--my son? Captain, you are very, very wrong,” Howard said. “My wife is expecting a child  _ now _ . I can’t have a 50 year old son!” 

 

“I’m 48,” Tony chimed in. Howard glared at Tony. 

 

“We’ll explain everything,” Steve said. “But you have to promise me.” 

 

Steve stared at Howard with determination. After a minute or two, Howard slowly nodded. 

 

“Alright, I promise.” 

 

Then Steve and Tony explained who they were, and how they got here to Howard. From waking up 70 years in the future, joining a group of heroes called the Avengers, finding out SHIELD was in fact, HYDRA in disguise (both Howard and Peggy couldn’t close their mouths out of shock), having a major disagreement between themselves, to fighting Thanos and losing, two of them explained everything. When they were finished, Howard was looking at them with awe and disbelief--it’s not everyday where you meet your supposedly deceased colleague  _ and  _ your future son who is not even born yet. 

 

“I--I don’t know what to say,” Howard said. “So you are Steve Rogers and Tony Stark, my son, who’s from the future?” 

 

Both of them nodded. 

 

“...Are we going to acknowledge the fact that SHIELD is actually HYDRA?” Peggy asked. “Steve, you didn’t tell me this before.” 

 

“I didn’t think it was the right time,” Steve said. “But you have a right to know. You both do.” 

 

When Steve said those words, he directly looked at Tony. Although it’s been two years--almost three years since the civil war happened between them, Steve spent every day after Siberia in guilt. He felt guilty for not telling Tony about his parents. And he tried to protect Bucky after what he has done all those years ago. 

 

_ What you did all those years...It wasn’t you. You didn’t have a choice.  _

 

_ I know. But I did it.  _

 

Steve was too focused on protecting Bucky from Tony, he didn’t think about  _ what  _ Bucky did as the Winter Soldier. 

 

“Steve...are you going to tell them?” Tony asked, knowing where he was going. 

 

Steve nodded. 

 

“I’m sorry, Tony...for keeping the truth away from you. I’m not going to make the same mistake again,” Steve said. 

 

Steve took a deep breath and faced Howard. 

 

“Howard, I have to tell you something,” Steve said. 

 

“Didn’t you just do that? That you are from the future and working with my future son?” Howard said, laughing.

 

“No, Howard. This is about you--specifically about you,” Steve said. “...December 16, 1991. That’s the date you get murdered...by none other than the Winter Soldier--Bucky Barnes.” 

 

Peggy gasped. Howard just stared at Steve, blinking his eyes. 

 

“...What?” 

 

“Bucky, who’s brainwashed at that time, kills...you and your wife,” Steve said. “....I’m sorry.” 

 

Steve couldn’t meet his eyes. It was as if guilt was swarming over Steve again, like it did two years ago. 

 

“So...Dad,” Tony said.  _ God, it feels weird calling him Dad again _ . “Please...don’t go anywhere on December 16, 1991. Stay home.” 

 

“Oh, Howard…” Peggy said, on the verge of tears. 

 

“...Why are you telling me all this?” Howard asked, looking at Steve and Tony. “Doesn’t this change the future entirely?” 

 

Tony and Steve looked at each other. Then Tony started to laugh uncontrollably. 

 

“S-sorry. I-I just thought the great Howard Stark would know how quantum physics work,” Tony said, still laughing. “Good to know I’m better at  _ something  _ than my father.” 

 

“Us coming here already created an alternate timeline apart from ours,” Steve explained. “So whatever you ‘change’ from the original timeline we know, it won’t affect our future.” 

 

“Which means,” Tony said, who finally stopped laughing. “There’s still a timeline out there where us two never came to 1970.”

 

“....Then would you mind telling us some events in detail? Like who’s HYDRA in SHIELD for example,” Peggy said, stepping forward. “Because as the Director, I am NOT letting those scumbags eat up my organization.” 

 

Steve smiled at seeing his girl in action again. 

 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“Dr. Pym, you are needed at the Director’s office,” a voice on the phone said. 

 

“...Why? I gave my report on the Pym particles and my project a week ago,” Hank Pym said.

 

“I’m not sure, but she said it was urgent, sir.” 

 

“Alright, then, I’m coming up.” 

 

Hank soon left his room, leaving his room unsecured and accessible to Howard, Peggy, Steve, and Tony. 

 

“...That was easy,” Tony said. 

 

“I  _ am  _ the founder of the SHIELD, remember?” Peggy said, smirking. 

 

Steve found the Pym particles displayed in the corner and smiled. He knew they needed every Pym particle they could get hands on as possible, because their next stop was 2018 Vormir, where they had to fight Thanos with four Infinity Stones for the Soul Stone, without giving him the other stones he needs. So he grabbed literally the entire first row of the particles and shoved them in his pockets. 

 

“Got ‘em, Spangles?” Tony asked. “Took you long enough.” 

 

“You know what Tony--” Steve chuckled. 

 

“It’s okay, you gotta see your girl, I get it,” Tony said. “Did you two have THE dance yet?” 

 

Steve and Peggy looked at each other. 

 

“No,” Steve answered, blushing. 

 

“No--wait how do you know that?!” Peggy asked, also blushing. 

 

“I’ll never tell,” Tony said, smirking.  _ Oh, how he loved teasing Steve _ . 

 

Steve turned to Peggy and held her hands. 

 

“...I guess this is it,” Steve said grimly. 

 

“You’re leaving now? Can’t you stay a little longer?” Peggy asked. 

 

“I want to, but we...we have a mission to complete,” Steve said. 

 

“...Which is saving the universe, actually. So kinda important,” Tony added. 

 

Tony turned to his own father. 

 

“Uh...I know we didn’t talk much,” Tony said. “But I just wanted to tell you--thank you for everything...you’ve done for me.” 

 

“I wasn’t a good dad, was I?” Howard asked bitterly. 

 

“To be honest...no, you weren’t,” Tony said. “You were obsessed with finding Cap, compared me to Capsicle right there, and...well, you never said you loved me or proud of me...How could you tell?” 

 

“...Your eyes were reflecting the same pain that I felt towards my own father,” Howard said. “But I guess I was worse than my old man.” 

 

Tony didn’t say anything. He didn’t know what to say. 

 

“....Tony,” Howard called him. That was probably the first time Howard called Tony by his name, not a ‘disappointment’ or ‘failure.’ “I’m sorry...for being a shitty dad. But I always want you to know--what is, and always will be, my greatest creation is... **_you_ ** . No amount of research or technology is going to change that.” 

 

Tony couldn’t hold it anymore. He broke into tears and started to  _ sob _ . Yes, Tony heard those words before from a video he found in 2010...but there was a  _ major  _ difference in hearing that from an old video and hearing it in person. Howard just held him and for the first time in his life, he... _ hugged _ him. 

 

“...This is still confusing, but I love you, son. And I’m so, so proud of you for everything you accomplished.” 

 

Tony smiled. 

 

“Thank you, Dad.” 

 

Steve and Peggy were watching them and Steve couldn’t help  but smile. He knew Tony had a tough relationship with Howard, so seeing him make up with his father made Steve happy. He then pulled out a piece of note and handed it to Peggy. 

 

“...What is it?” Peggy asked. 

 

“Information on the top is the coordinates of where my plane landed in the Arctic,” Steve said. Peggy gasped. “Information on the bottom is where the old HYDRA base is, where Bucky Barnes and other Winter Soldiers are kept in.” 

 

“...And you want me to save both of you?” 

 

Steve shook his head.

 

“No, Peggy. That choice is up to you to make. It is definitely a possibility--but you don’t have to take that route. It’s a chance.” 

 

Peggy put her hand on Steve’s face and  _ kissed  _ him on the lips. 

 

“...And it’s a chance I’m willing to take,” Peggy said. 

 

“Now  _ that  _ was something,” Tony said, smirking. “I’m impressed, Cap. Thought you didn’t have it in you.” 

 

Steve chuckled and stood next to Tony. They both switched into their Quantum suits and typed the coordinates for the year 2018 in. 

 

“Goodbye, Peggy.” 

 

“Goodbye, Dad.” 

 

Two figures disappeared from Hank Pym’s office, right as furious Hank walked in. 

 

“What just happened?! Where  _ are  _ my Pym particles?!” 

 

“Oh, we’ll never tell,” Peggy said, laughing. Howard laughed with her. 


	14. Avengers, time to work for a living

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers and the cast gather around to see how things went down differently. They run into a new problem and the Avengers head to 2018 Vormir to get the last stone from Thanos, leaving the cast members behind. 
> 
> That's when they run into much worse problem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that there are two Tom's (Holland and Hiddleston), I'm just going to refer to Tom Holland as 'Tom' and Tom Hiddleston as 'Hiddleston.' I thought about calling them 'Holland' and 'Hiddleston,' like I do with the two Chrises, but that just didn't sound right. This is just my personal opinion/choice, there's nothing against Tom Hiddleston (I love him). 
> 
> Also, sorry for not updating for a few days, I was at ACE Comic Con on Saturday and met CHRIS EVANS. (was not calm at all).
> 
> Anyways, thank you so much for all your support!

When the Avengers appeared again in 2018 at the headquarters, the rest of the cast ran up to them. They were relieved that no Avenger was missing from the group this time around. In fact, Hemsworth noticed that Thor and Rocket brought back one more Avenger with them-- _Tom Hiddleston_. 

 

“...Tom? Is that you?” Hemsworth asked, looking up. He just escaped from Thanos’ grasp a few seconds ago. It was good to see one of his closest people in the cast. 

 

“Chris! My brother from another mother,” Hiddleston walked up to him and hugged him tightly. “So Thor was telling the truth. My god, what happened to you?” 

 

“Just scratches, I’m fine,” Hemsworth said. 

 

Thor looked at the interaction between his and Loki’s counterparts with... jealousy. Hiddleston even called Hemsworth ‘brother from another mother…’ That was how he was with Loki himself. He then looked towards a family figure...who looked like Loki…

 

“...Loki?” 

 

The figure turned around. Thor couldn’t believe his eyes--it was _Loki_. Next to Robert and Evans, Loki--his brother--was standing, smiling at him. He walked up to shocked Thor. 

 

“I told you the sun will shine on us again, Brother,” Loki said. 

 

“...You’re here,” Thor said. 

 

“I’m here,” Loki said. Then he pulled Thor in for the hug, the hug that they didn’t get a year ago. 

 

“Not to ruin the moment here, but we have things to explain,” Robert said. He looked at Loki. 

 

“...We all do,” Steve said, thinking about what happened back in 1970. 

  
  
  
  


So each team explained what went down and how Tom Hiddleston and Loki arrived in 2018. The cast incredibly happy to see another addition to their group, especially Tom Holland. He now had a fellow Brit in the group who could obsess about afternoon tea and sounded very excited. Although Loki coming back with Robert and Evans was stressful for the most of the Avengers, it was a huge delight for Thor, who couldn’t stop smiling throughout the meeting. When Tony and Steve explained that they ran into both Howard Stark and Peggy Carter, the cast realized that things were going differently than the film.

 

“...You two met both Howard Stark and Peggy Carter?” Evans asked. “And you told them... _everything_?”

 

“That was for the best,” Steve said. “We already created an alternate timeline by running into Howard and Peggy anyway, so what could it hurt to tell them about HYDRA and my future?” 

 

“And we now have both Loki and Tom,” Robert said, shaking his head. 

 

Hiddleston stared at Loki. Long black hair, green eyes, leather suit with yellow cape...it really was Loki. He has played the character many times now, but it was hard to believe that this was Loki, god of mischief in front of him. It was almost like seeing a part of himself. 

 

“Things are happening so differently,” Scarlett said. “It’s almost like our presence is affecting the original MCU timeline.” 

 

“Yes, we almost died at the hands of Thanos,” Hemsworth said, looking at Rhodey and Nebula. 

 

“...Like you said, Thanos learned the future through my memories,” Nebula said, turning towards Robert. As he opened his mouth to argue, Nebula continued on. “But it’s fine--I escaped. Barely. But I made it out of there with the Power Stone.” 

 

“That’s good..but that wasn’t supposed to happen if this really is the MCU we know,” Scarlett said. “If the things went exactly as the films in the past, why are they changing now?”

 

Tony stared at the wall for a moment and seemed to realize something. 

 

“FRIDAY, run a diagnosis on the Earth’s energy state,” Tony said. “Tell me if there’s anything unusual.” 

 

Soon, an image of the planet Earth popped up on the projective screens in front of them. The surface of the Earth was light red, with a mix of blue. 

 

“Tony, did you figure out something?” Steve asked. 

 

“Before the Snap, the entire Earth was blue, which means normal,” Tony said. “A month after the Snap, the Earth is radidating chronic energy, which is displayed in red. Which means--when Thanos snapped out half of the living creatures in the universe, he tore a hole in another dimension. That’s how you guys came into our world. The Reality and Space Stone alone would’ve navigated alternate dimension. It’s not surprising that it landed on your world since you all do have some connections to us. Time Stone would’ve picked the time in your world, and the Power Stone is what pulled you guys over.” 

 

“That is true. Doesn’t _Far From Home_ mention the alternate dimensions?” Robert asked Tom. 

 

“Yes, actually Mysterio is from--” Robert put his hand over Tom’s mouth immediately. 

 

“I asked a very simple question, Tom. Didn’t ask you to spoil everything,” Robert said. He slowly removed his hand. 

 

“Who is he? Is he your son or something?” Loki asked curiously. The Avengers explained the alternate dimension concept to him briefly so he was aware of all these dopplegangers, but he didn’t remember seeing Tom anywhere.

 

“No,” Tom said. 

 

“Yes,” The entire Avengers and the cast nodded. 

 

“Aw, you’re hurting your old man’s feelings,” Robert said, fake tearing up. 

 

“You’re my mentor and role model! I have a father--” Tom shouted without thinking, and now he was embarrassed. He called RDJ his mentor and role model straight to his face. Yes, of course he was, but there was a difference between knowing it and admitting it out loud in front of the Avengers. 

 

“What did you say, Tom? A bit louder please?” Robert asked, laughing. _He loved teasing Tom_. He put a hand around Tom and hugged him, who was turning red out of embarrassment.

 

Watching Robert and Tom were a bit painful for Tony- _-oh, how he missed that with his own son...Peter_. When the image first came up on the screen, Tony noticed that the shade of blue is disappearing day by day and was being replaced by the shade of red. If this went on...he didn’t know what would happen. Either this world would be merged into the other world or both worlds will crash, not being able to handle all the different types of energy. Tony knew he had to build an alternate dimension portal now like he did with the Quantum Tunnel so he could navigate and more importantly, control it. 

 

But he also knew he needed all six stones to do that. He didn’t have much time. 

 

“So, the reason everything is happening a bit differently is because two worlds are merging,” Tony said. “As you can see, more and more people from your guys’ world are coming into ours--because we have the Infinity Stones. I haven’t studied or looked into much, but I believe this will eventually will lead to the ‘Dimensional Crisis.’ Which is a problem.” 

 

Everyone turned to Tony at the word ‘problem.’ Wasn’t what they had so far enough?

 

“...If this continues without being taken care of, one dimension or the other will disappear,” Tony said.

 

The Avengers cast looked at each other. That meant they might never go home. They would be stuck here--never seeing their families or friends ever again. 

 

“Is there anything you can do, Tony?” Evans asked. 

 

“Yes, I can build the Alternate Dimension Portal as I promised. But in order for that to happen, I need all six stones. Five wouldn’t do it,” Tony said. 

 

“...Then we should get going,” Steve said. “We have to leave tomorrow. This is no longer the only fight for the people who died. We have a universe to save.” 

 

“We sure do, Cap,” Tony said. “I guess we can call it a night. We leave early tomorrow.” 

 

“...I don’t think I should go,” Nebula said all of the sudden. “And I shouldn’t.” 

 

Everyone turned to her. Nebula didn’t speak much after they returned from their missions.

 

“Is everything alright, Nebula?” Tony asked. 

 

Nebula shook her head. 

 

“When Thanos captured us--I...I thought we would all die there. I thought leaving my piece here would solve the problem, but he still managed to get information out of me. If it wasn’t for Gamora and my countless training with Thanos, I would never have made it out there. I feel like I make things worse for the team.” 

 

“Nebula--” Tony tried to comfort her. But she just shook her head. 

 

“I don’t think I’ll be able to fight him tomorrow,. You’ll be better off without me. Thanos will find a way to use me against you again.” 

 

Tony hugged her. He knew Thanos abused her since her childhood, but seeing her panic broke his heart. This girl deserved all the love she could get, and even though she wasn’t used to affection, Tony wanted to show not everyone was against her. Nebula startled for a bit, but stayed calm. 

 

“Alright, then. You can stay here with the others,” Tony said softly. 

 

The Avengers and the cast left the briefing room for their own rooms, trying not to think about the possibility of the universe collapsing at any minute. 

  
  
  
  
  


“....Tony,” Pepper called him. It was almost 2AM, but Tony was still in his lab, trying to sort out the dimension crisis. “You should be in bed.” 

 

“What if I can’t sleep? On top of bringing everyone back...this dimension crisis...I just can’t,” Tony said, covering his face with his hands. 

 

Pepper walked up to him and simply kissed him on his forehead. 

 

“You need to rest, Tony. You have a big day tomorrow. And I don’t know--I don’t know if...you’d be okay,” Pepper said, trying to hold back tears. Tony almost died fighting Thanos last time. If it wasn’t for Nebula, she wasn’t sure if Tony would’ve survived that long in space alone. She just found him again...now he was leaving again. When the cast had told the Avengers that Tony dies at the end of this...there couldn’t be a worse nightmare than that. 

 

“I’ll be alright, Pep,” Tony said hugging her. “I’m not gonna die. All the Avengers are going. It will be fine.” 

 

Tony then kissed Pepper on the lips. 

 

“I love you, Tony.” 

 

“I’ll come back you to Pep,” Tony said. “I’m not leaving you.” 

 

They started to kiss again and did not stop. One by one, their clothes came off and were tossed to the ground. 

 

“....Shouldn’t we do this in the bedroom?” Pepper asked, lying on the ground.

 

“I sleep here a lot, so technically you are in my bedroom,” Tony said. 

 

Pepper started to laugh. Tony laughed with her. It was going to be a long night. 

  


By 9AM, all the Avengers and the cast were in front of the Quantum Tunnel. This time, only the Avengers, including Loki (Tony and a few others were against it but Thor convinced them Loki will be useful), were heading to Vormir, leaving the cast members behind. While Robert protested, 

 

“We _are_ useful too!” 

 

The majority agreed that it was the best for the cast to stay at the headquarters because this was Thanos with four Infinity Stones. Especially since Hemsworth almost died retrieving the Power Stone, they thought it was a good idea to not go to Vormir. Right before the Avengers were about to leave, Tony walked up to Robert, handing him a silver briefcase. 

 

“...What is this?” Robert asked. 

 

“It’s the Stark glasses, Iron Watch...and additional Arc Reactor. The suit’s the second newest one I own,” Tony said. 

 

“Thank you,” Robert said. “But why?” 

 

“...Let’s just say I don’t feel that comfortable with leaving just you guys,” Tony said. “I also reprogrammed FRIDAY so now you have the entire access to the headquarters until I return.”

 

Tony reached out his hand for a handshake. But Robert decided to pull him in for a hug. 

 

“You’re the best, genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist,” Robert said while hugging him. 

 

“Okay, now I’m worried that you would abuse my tech,” Tony said. 

 

Robert smirked at Tony. Tony frowned but turned around and stepped on to the platform, along with the other Avengers. 

 

“Look out for each other,” Evans said to the team. The Avengers simply nodded. 

 

“You guys ready? 3...2...1…”

 

As Mark was about to press the buttons, Tom yelled. 

 

“Wait!” 

 

Everyone looked at him. Tom just ran up to Tony and hugged him tightly. Tony was surprised but smiled and put his arms around Tom. He was really starting to grow on Tony, just like Peter did. 

 

“I already lost you once,” Tom said. “Promise to come home.” 

 

Pulling Tom back, Tony gave him the biggest smile since the Infinity War. 

 

“I promise, Tom.”

 

After Tom got off from the platform, Mark pressed the buttons, and the Avengers were gone. The cast returned to living room. 

 

“...This is worse than we thought,” Mark said, sitting down. “I didn’t think us coming here would lead to universe catastrophe.”

 

“We didn’t do anything. The Snap did. One way or another, we have to sort this out as soon as possible,” Scarlett said. 

 

“There’s nothing we can do until they return with the stones,” Jeremy said. “We’ll just watch out for the energy levels.” 

 

“Should we check on Nebula? She’s been down since last night,” Robert asked. 

 

“Sure. Where is she now, by the way?” Hemsworth said, looking around. 

  
  
  
  


Nebula quietly walked into the Quantum Tunnel room, looking out for any kinds of sounds--especially footsteps. When she heard nothing, she slowly walked up to the control panels and began to type in the date and place by putting her metallic fingers inside the panel: _2014_ , _Morag._

 

The Tunnel began to open--and that’s when Robert came in. 

 

“Oh, hey, Nebula, we were looking for you--” 

 

Robert saw the Quantum Tunnel and Nebula, and immediately knew what just happened.

 

 _Oh, fuck. Shit_.  

 

This wasn’t 2018 Nebula. Nebula standing in front of Robert was from 2014 and she just let 2014 Thanos and his army through. As Thanos’ gigantic ship flew out of the Quantum Tunnel and broke through the ceiling, Robert ran as fast as he could to the other cast members, yelling. 

 

“AVENGERS! WE’RE IN TROUBLE!!” 

  
  
  
  
  
  


2018 Nebula was running with the Power Stone in her hand. She was almost there--the prison was just around the corner--and that’s when the other Nebula appeared out of nowhere in front of her and shot her leg. The future Nebula screamed in pain, falling to the ground and letting go of the Power Stone. 2014 Nebula picked up the Orb and kneeled down so she could speak to her future self. 

 

“...Did you really think you could escape? From Father? From Us?”

 

Future Nebula didn’t say anything. She was grabbing on to her leg, groaning. Then she jumped up and took her past self’s gun and crushed it into pieces with her feet. 2014 Nebula kicked her to the ground. 2018 Nebula couldn’t move--there was a pool of blood forming on the ground. 

 

“You disgust me,” 2014 Nebula said. “But that doesn’t mean you’re useless.” 

 

She then took out her knife and took off Nebula’s headpiece and replaced it with her own. She also transmitted future Nebula’s recent memory files to her, so she wouldn’t look suspicious to the Avengers. As she was about to leave, Gamora caught up with them. 

 

“...Nebula! Neb--” 

 

“...So, you betrayed Father,” 2014 Nebula said, glaring at Gamora. “How could you?” 

 

“I didn’t betray him,” Gamora said, looking down at future Nebula and aiming her gun at 2014 Nebula. “She escaped on her own.” 

 

“ _It’s you who gave the Orb to her!_ Think about who you really are, Gamora. You are Father’s daughter! Or...are you a traitor?” 2014 Nebula yelled at her. 

 

Gamora didn’t answer right away. She wasn’t sure who to trust--she wasn’t sure who she was, even. Was she Thanos’ daughter? _Yes_ . Did she like being his daughter? _No_. But she’s living like this for years...since he took her from her home planet. Walking away from him...was this the right thing to do?

 

“Gamora! Don’t listen to her!” the future Nebula shouted. 

 

She didn’t want to. But Nebula’s words reminded her of her duty--her obligation--who she was. She never wanted to be a warrior. But that’s what she was now, there was no way of changing that. Believe it or not...this, _this was the only family she had_. 

 

Gamora slowly put the gun down, and 2014 Nebula stole 2018 Nebula’s gun from her pocket and ran to the prison. After she left, Gamora offered her hand for Nebula to get up, but she refused. Without talking to her, Nebula ran as fast as she could to the prison--hoping she would stop her past self from leaving with Rhodey and Hemsworth. Gamora ran beside her, even when Nebula shot her a glare. 

 

But when Nebula and Gamora ran in, the 2014 Nebula, Rhodey, and Hemsworth were already disappearing. 

 

“ _No_!” Nebula screamed. But it was too late. They were gone from this time. 

 

“...I’m sorry, Nebula,” Gamora said.

 

“ _You_ let them go,” Nebula said. "Do you know what you've done?”

 

“I was just trying to help,” Gamora said.

 

“Thought you were on my side,” Nebula said. “Guess we can’t be Sisters after all.”

  
  
  
  
  


“...Neb--Nebula is...from 2014,” Robert said as he ran into the room where the rest of the cast was. 

 

“What?” Evans was the first one to respond and stood up. 

 

“I don’t know how it happened...but...she’s not ours. They must’ve switched places back in Morag,” Robert said, catching his breath. 

 

“Wh-What do we do then?” Tom asked, panicking. 

 

Robert picked up the suitcase that Tony gave him, and opened it. Under normal circumstances, Robert would’ve starstrucked at the Iron Man tech, but this was an EMERGENCY. A MAJOR, MAJOR EMERGENCY. He quickly put on the glasses, the Watch, and the Arc Reactor. 

 

“FRIDAY, activitate ‘Barn Door’ Protocol and let me know if Nebula escapes the headquarters,” Robert said, tapping his glasses. “And also are there any signs of potential breach?” 

 

“No, Boss. The warship is right by the headquarters, but there are no signs of attempts of attack for now,” FRIDAY responded. 

 

Every door, Every window began to close and soon, the Avengers headquarters were fully covered with metal plates. 

 

“Okay, listen up,” Robert said. “They aren’t back from Vormir yet and Thanos is not attacking this place right away like he did in the film. That doesn’t mean we have much time. First things first: we HAVE to find Scott’s van and turn it on--the Tunnel’s broken. That’s the only way the Avengers can come back.”

 

“...Then what?” Mark asked, trying to calm down. _They’re about to face an alien spaceship on their own_. 

 

“Let’s head to the Weapons Room,” Robert said. “Avengers, time to work for a living.”


	15. As long as one man stands against you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers cast try their best to hold Thanos off while also attempting to get the Quantum Tunnel running. Meanwhile, the Avengers do whatever it takes to get the Soul Stone from 2018 Thanos in Vormir. 
> 
> Both sides run into problems--and there's one person who saves them all.

The Avengers cast ran to the elevator and just as the doors closed, Robert shouted. 

 

“FRIDAY, take us to the Weapons Room and locate Lang’s brown van!” 

 

“Yes, Boss.” 

 

As the elevator started to go down, Tom was trying his best not to panic. 

 

“We-we are gonna die,” Tom said, breathing heavily. “The Avengers had no chance against Thanos. We aren’t the Avengers. We are just actors. God--” 

 

That’s when Robert simply pulled Tom in for a hug. While hugging, Robert also kissed Tom on his forehead. 

 

“...It’s okay, Tom. Nothing bad’s gonna happen. I got you. I’m not letting you get hurt,” Robert said. 

 

“Boss. The van is in the basement,” FRIDAY informed Robert. “Near by the Weapons Room.” 

 

The elevator dinged and the cast got out. They’ve never been down here before--they had no reason to. The place was especially more fascinating for Tom Hiddleston, because he just came back from Asgard with Thor and Rocket and was still trying to adjust to the whole ‘getting sucked into MCU by accident’ thing. 

 

When they entered the room, they couldn’t help but to stop and stare at all the weapons-- they’ve seen some in previous movies, others were brand-new. The incredible thing was that there were weapons prepared for each original Avenger--including a Captain America shield, A duel bow and arrows, and a variety of types of guns and knives. 

 

“I didn’t know there was a second Captain America shield,” Evans said. 

 

“It’s probably the one showed up in _Iron Man_ ,” Robert said. “I knew Tony was working on a prototype. With Vibranium in Wakanda, it’s no surprise.” 

 

“Wow...Mr. Stark actually has different versions of Spiderman suits,” Tom said, forgetting that he was in a very conflicted situation for a minute. Next to the Iron Man suits, a few Spiderman suits were lined up, including the Stark Suit, which Peter wore in _Spider-man:Homecoming_. 

 

“Okay, we don’t have time to drool over them,” Robert said. “Cap, suit up--the Stealth suit looks the best--and take the shield. Mark, you can take the Hulkbuster--good thing Tony made a few of them. Scarlett, take the guns and the knives. Jeremy, you got the bow and arrows. Hemmy--I don’t know about you, we don’t have Mjolnir and we aren’t sure if any of us is worthy. Tom, you will take the Stark Suit--I’m sure there will be web shooters. Hiddleston--you’re staying with Hemmy but stay low.” 

 

The Avengers quickly did as Robert told, knowing that this was their best chance. Within minutes, the cast changed into each of their armors and grabbed their weapons--if they didn’t know any better, each of them _really_ looked like the actual Avengers on the outside. The person who was closest to the actual Avenger would probably be Robert, with his skill to control FRIDAY easily and Tony Stark’s confidence. 

 

“Boss, there’s incoming!” FRIDAY shouted. 

 

Seconds after, the Avengers cast saw a series of missiles flying towards the headquarters. 

 

“RUN!” Evans yelled. 

 

“Head to the van! _Now_!” Robert yelled. 

 

As the missiles hit the side of the headquarters, they ran out of the room and headed to where the van was parked. 

 

“I’ll get the van out before the entire building collapses!” Evans yelled as he was running. 

 

“We’re coming with you!” Hiddleston and Hemsworth yelled back. 

 

So three of them went into the basement to get the van, while others ran towards the door or the windows. As they got closer to the exit, Robert and Mark prepared to fly. 

 

“Tom! Take my hand and DON’T let go!” Robert shouted. Tom nodded. 

 

Robert grabbed Tom and they flew out of the headquarters. Now it was Mark’s turn to do the same thing. He turned to Scarlett and Jeremy. 

 

“Ok--I absolutely have zero idea what’s going on, but hold on to me,” Mark said.

 

 He knew the Hulkbuster was quite strong--it was able to put Angry Hulk to sleep in _Age of Ultron_ , so it wouldn’t be a problem for him to carry two people. Scarlett and Jeremy nodded and held onto Mark. Mark flew out as another missile hit the headquarters. Since it was his first time using the Hulkbuster or using MCU technology ever, it took a while for him to hold steady in the air, but in the end he managed. He gently landed on the ground and let two Avengers down. They stood next to Robert and Tom who were facing the front, expecting Thanos to appear. 

 

“Where’s Chris?” Mark asked. “Both of them. They should be--” 

 

At that exact moment, the brown van burst through the collapsing building and stopped next to the rest of the cast. Evans, Hesmworth, and Hiddleston got out of the van. 

 

“...Speaking of the devil,” Robert said. “Knew you would make it out there.” 

 

“What do we do now?” Scarlett asked. 

 

“When Thanos comes, we fight,” Evans said, adjusting his cowl and the shield. “The Avengers aren’t here right now. Believe it or not, we are the best chance against Thanos. We _have_ to be the Avengers.” 

 

Robert nodded. 

 

“...Whatever it takes.” 

  
  
  
  
  
  


_Vormir, 2018_. 

 

When the Avengers landed on Vormir, there were no signs of Thanos or the Soul Stone. 

 

“Are we in the right place, or time?” Tony asked. 

 

“...Yes,” Loki said, pointing towards the top of the cliff. Even from the ground, they could see Thanos forcibly grabbing Gamora and tossing her over the cliff. Her screams echoed through Vormir--reminding the Avengers the reason they came here and the mercilessness of Thanos. 

 

“...He just killed his own daughter,” Natasha said in shock and disbelief. She knew that already but there was a difference between hearing it and seeing it with her own eyes. 

 

Loki thought about how his father--how Odin _always_ favored Thor over him. Even before finding out his true heritage, Loki always felt that Odin preferred Thor and raised him to be the king of Asgard in the first place. Learning what happened to Gamora and Nebula, Loki wasn’t surprised how Thanos treated them--while he didn’t want to admit, Thanos and Odin had similar parenting styles. Gamora was the older sibling who always won, and Nebula was the younger sibling who always lost. 

 

“...He sacrificed his daughter so he can have a better world for himself,” Tony said. 

 

As Gamora hit the ground, a series of blue lights lit up in the sky. 

 

“That’s our signal,” Steve said. “Thanos will be here any minute.” 

 

Soon, Thanos appeared out of nowhere and was lying down on the ground. He stood up and looked down at the orange Soul Stone. He clenched his fist with determination and was about to use the Space Stone to create a portal to Titan. 

 

“...You are not leaving with that stone in your hand,” Tony said. 

 

Thanos turned around and saw Tony standing behind him. One by one, the Avengers surrounded Thanos. 

 

“The Avengers...I thought Gamora was the only one who knew where the Soul Stone was kept,” Thanos said, a bit out of shock. 

 

“Well, you are wrong,” Tony said, preparing his blasters. “And you don’t deserve that stone.” 

 

Before Thanos could react, Tony blasted Thanos in the face, which made Thanos fall to the ground. But the Soul Stone was still in his grasp. 

 

“Now that felt good,” Tony said. 

 

“Yeah, if your goal was to piss him off,” Clint said, pulling out his bow and arrows. 

 

Thanos stood up and aimed the Power Stone at Tony, and since Tony already experienced the same tactic not too long ago, he put up his shield up. 

 

“...He started to use the Infinity Stones,” Thor said, tightening his grip on Stormbreaker. Using the Stormbreaker, Thor summoned lightning and directed it towards Thanos. 

 

“Where’s your other hammer?” Rocket asked, noticing that Mjolnir was missing. 

 

“...Where it’s supposed to be,” Thor said. 

 

As blue lightning hit Thanos, Pietro ran towards him as fast as he could and tried to loosen his grip on the Soul Stone. However, he ended up getting punched in the face, which caused him to be thrown to the ground. 

 

“This is not working!” Natasha yelled. 

 

“Alright, let’s go with Plan B,” Tony said. “It’s showtime, Reindeer Games.” 

 

Loki walked up to Thanos, conjuring green light of magic from his hand. Thanos was heavily breathing and shocked to see the trickster alive again. 

 

“...Thought you died,” Thanos said. 

 

“Reality is often disappointing, isn’t it? Did you _really_ think you can just choke my life out of me? Do you even know who I am? I’m Loki, god of mischief. I lie for a living,” Loki said facing Thanos. He had the confidence he didn’t have last time. Instead of fear, his face was filled with determination. 

 

“Your confidence...is misplaced, you wrenched thief,” Thanos said, as he blasted the four Infinity Stones at Loki. But instead of screaming, Loki’s body simply disappeared from Thanos’ view--like a hologram. 

 

“I didn’t think you were going to fall for that,” Loki said from the side, a few feet away from Thanos. “You never learn, do you? But that’s why you’re going to lose.” 

 

“Nonsense! I have the Infinity Stones,” Thanos said. “And they are just humans.” 

 

As Thanos wasn’t looking and was too invested in Loki, Tony took out the Reality Stone. Steve took out the Time Stone. Thor had the Power Stone in his hand--other than minor burns, his body didn’t crumble like people who attempted to touch the stone with their bare hands. Clint grabbed the Mind Stone out of his pocket. And lastly, Bruce had the Space Stone. 

 

“The thing is,” Tony said. Thanos turned towards him and the Avengers. “We have them too.” 

 

The five Avengers immediately aimed the stones at Thanos, who wasn’t prepared to defend their attack. Thanos went flying and was tossed to the ground. Pietro ran again, and clenched the Soul Stone out of his fist. He then handed the Stone to Tony. Thanos lied there groaning. There was blood all over his body--and he couldn’t move. 

 

“You’re right,” Tony said, looking down at Thanos. “We’re only humans. But we made you bleed. We stopped you.” 

 

“The Stones...It’s not possible,” Thanos said. 

 

“We collected these on our own, our _way_ ,” Bruce said.

 

“...Yet here you are...too scared to sacrifice a life to get the last stone,” Thanos said, laughing. 

 

“You got each of the stones with force,” Steve said. “You sacrificed so many lives so you can accomplish your insane plan of yours. We aren’t scared. We are willing to do whatever it takes to save our loved ones--our family. Even if that means we have to fight you multiple times.” 

 

Tony handed the Soul Stone to Natasha. 

 

“Here, take it. You deserve this.” 

 

“...Why me?” Natasha asked. 

 

“Because--you are the soul of our team. This belongs to you. Besides, you’re the only one from the original Avengers missing an Infinity Stone,” Tony said with a smile. 

 

Natasha took the stone and put it in her pocket. 

 

“Let’s go home,” Clint said. 

 

Everyone switched to the Quantum Suits and typed in the coordinates for 2018. However, when they pressed the button, nothing happened. 

 

“Wh-what’s going on?” Scott asked, confused. 

 

“We have the Pym particles, right?” Bruce asked. 

 

“Yes,” Loki answered. 

 

“Then why are we still here?!” Rocket asked. 

 

“...Because--the door’s closed on the other side,” Tony said, looking down. 

 

“What?” Steve asked, knowing something went wrong again. 

 

“Something must’ve happened on the other end,” Tony said. 

 

“...What do we do then?” Thor asked, checking on Thanos. It seemed like he was starting to move a bit again. 

 

“We wait,” Tony said. “We wait for them to open the door.” 

 

“...What if they can’t?” Bruce asked. 

 

“I trust them.” 

 

That was all Tony said. 

  
  
  
  
  
  


“Is the Quantum Tunnel open yet?” Evans asked. 

 

“No, but we are trying!” Hiddleston yelled through the window. The battery was damaged from the explosion, so he and Hemsworth have been trying to hot-wire it--which has been unsuccessful. 

 

“...Cap,” Robert said, pointing to the front. Evans turned around--and saw Thanos descending from his gigantic warship. He was wearing his helmet and armor and carrying his double-edged sword. 

 

“Just like in the film,” Scarlett said. 

 

“I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing,” Jeremy said, pulling out an arrow from his quiver. 

 

As Thanos got closer, the cast silently waited. Avoiding the direct fight as long as possible was the best strategy they had for now. 

 

“You could not live with your own failure. And where did that bring you? Back to me,” Thanos said with a vicious smile. “I thought by eliminating half of life, the other half would thrive. But you’ve shown me that’s impossible. And as long as there are those that remember what was, there will always be those that are unable to accept what can be. They will resist.” 

 

“Yep, We’re all kinds of stubborn,” Robert said. 

 

“I’m thankful. Because now, I know what I must do. I will shred this universe down to its last atom. And then...With the stones you've collected for me, create a new one. Teeming with life, but knows not what it has lost but only what it has been given. A grateful universe.”

 

“Born out of blood,” Evans said, tightening his grip on the shield. The fight was inevitable now. He could feel it. 

 

“They'll never know it. Because you won't be alive to tell them,” Thanos said. 

 

Robert aimed all of the nanotech missiles at Thanos at once, while Evans went for his legs, attempting to knock Thanos down, or at least stop him for a second or two. Jeremy shot his first arrow at Thanos, which believe it or not landed on one of his arms, but that didn’t seem to do much to the Mad Titan. 

 

“...Impressive,” Thanos said with a smile. He pulled out the arrow Jeremy shot at him with ease. “For a group of Avengers clones from a different dimension.” 

 

The cast looked at each other. _He knows. He knows we are not the actual Avengers_. 

 

“Nebula’s memory files have shown me tremendous things,” Thanos continued. “Including the fact that you all are regular humans--who don’t have any power to stop a being like _me_.” 

 

Thanos charged at the cast again, and this time, they were even less prepared than before. Although they didn’t want to admit, Thanos was right. They were regular human beings--no Super Soldier, no Norse God, no Assassin, and no Enhanced Human. They were simply _actors--_ people who impersonate other people, characters on screen. 

 

As Robert barely held off Thanos with his Iron Shield, he had an idea. An idea that was slightly used in the past movies, but in a totally different way. He had no idea if this would work. He wasn’t Tony Stark. He wasn’t a genius. Hell, even if he was Tony Stark himself--he wouldn’t be sure this would work. But he had to try. _Whatever it takes_. 

 

“FRIDAY, can you do something for me?” 

 

“Of course, Boss. What would you like me to do?” 

 

“...Activate _House Party Protocol_.” 

 

Meanwhile, Evans was trying to stop Thanos from cutting his body in half--his shield was already damaged. Mark’s half of Hulkbuster was malfunctioning, while Scarlett had a cut across her cheek. She took a knife out of her thighs and put it through Thanos’ bare arm, but that didn’t stop him from hitting her in the ribs. Jeremy was getting the hang of the bow and arrow and had a pretty good aim--but that didn’t work when his opponent was the Mad Titan. 

 

And Tom--Tom was nearby the van, watching as the fight between Thanos and the Avengers cast unfolded. He wanted to help. But he didn’t have Spidey Sense. He didn’t have super strength. All he had--was the web shooters, which were useless to him. The entire cast was _fighting_ \--either holding off Thanos physically or helping to bring the van to life. But he was behind the van, basically hiding out of fear. He didn’t want to. He didn’t--

 

Then, Tom saw Thanos charging towards _him_ , jumping over the other Avengers. He didn’t know why--but it was true that Tom was defenseless against Thanos. He saw his life flashing before his eyes. He heard all other cast calling for him--

 

“...TOM!NO!” Robert’s voice was the loudest of them all. 

 

“...Everyone has a weakness,” Thanos said. “And their weakness...is _you_.” 

 

Thanos aimed the double-edged blade at Tom and threw it. Tom closed his eyes. He heard the blade piercing through the body--but not his. No, he didn’t feel any pain at all. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself hugged by none other than Chris Hemsworth. But there was no stains of blood on his armor, either. Hemsworth turned around and saw-- _Tom Hiddleston bleeding_ , Thanos’ blade pierced through his Asgardian armor. His breathing was heavy and slowing down. 

 

“TOM! OH MY GOD!” Tom yelled at Hiddleston. “No, no, no, no, no…”

 

“Tom! _Tom_ ! Stay with me! Stay with me, _brother_!” Hemsworth wrapped his arms around Hiddleston. He was still breathing--there was a chance for him to live--but that chance was becoming more impossible second by second. 

 

“As you see, you are _weak_ ,” Thanos said, coming towards the cast. “You are no heroes. You are weak beings, who are destined to be sacrificed for the greater good. No one can stop me. There’s no one to save you--not even the mighty _Avengers_. They will never come back to this world, this future.” 

 

The Avengers cast didn’t know what to do. They were about to lose Hiddleston. There was nothing more they could do. The real Avengers would be stuck in Vormir 2018, with another version of Thanos. The people who died from the Snap will never come back again. Maybe--they ruined it. Maybe--by coming into this world, this universe, they took away the _one_ chance where the Avengers could’ve won. 

 

 _Dr. Strange was right_ , Robert thought. _Maybe Tony and Nat dying, sacrificing for the universe was the only way_. 

 

But it was too late. Thanos had the upper hand. They were no Avengers. The best they could do was portray them--not _become_ them. No one could do that. 

 

“... _No_ ,” a trembling voice said. All the cast looked up. Hemsworth looked up, covering Hiddleston’s body, tears falling down from his eyes. 

 

It was Tom. Tom Holland. He stood up in front of Hemsworth and Hiddleston. He was no longer shaking in fear; he was shaking in _anger_. 

 

“You’re wrong. _The Avengers will come back. We will stop you_. And we are NOT weak,” Tom said, clenching his teeth and stepping forward. “As long as one man stands against you, Thanos, you’ll never be able to claim victory.” 

 

“Noble sentiments from one who is about to die,” Thanos said. 

 

“NO!” Robert shouted again. The cast members ran towards Tom with desperation. 

 

But Tom didn’t close his eyes this time. He wasn’t afraid anymore. He was...ready. Instead, he held his hand out. He didn’t know how, but he just _knew_ . Maybe he really had the Spidey Sense. Before Thanos reached Tom, Tom was covered in blue lightning. Tom’s eyes were glowing _blue_ . And _Mjolnir_ \--the very same one Thor brought it from Asgard--was in Tom’s hand. 

 

“I am NOT letting you touch my family ever again,” Tom said.

 

Without hesitation, Tom summoned lightning and directed towards Thanos, who was thrown hundred feet in the air--and soon there was blood on the ground. 

 

He then blasted lightning  towards the end of the van, where the Quantum Tunnel laid. The Tunnel made whirring noise, and it spit out some familiar faces: _The Avengers_. 

 

“...Did it work?” Tony asked, panting. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you are wondering how Thanos found out about the Avengers cast, he continued to extract information out of 2018 Nebula after past herself switched places. I also know the line "As long as one man stands against you, Thanos, you will never be able to claim victory" is originally by Cap in the comics, but I wanted to change things a bit. But I really did like the fact that Cap can wield Mjolnir, so that also might come on later--we'll see.


	16. AVENGERS...ASSEMBLE!!!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The entire Avengers gather together to defeat Thanos and his army for the one last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for not updating, I finished the chapter a few days ago, but I didn't have any wifi until today because I just moved to a new apartment.  
> This was one of my favorite chapters to write, so I hope you guys like it!

The 11 Avengers stood up--all of them looked exhausted and had small cuts on their faces. Tony looked back at the Quantum Tunnel they just came through and looked around him. The Avengers headquarters was long gone--the symbolic ‘A’ was broken into pieces, there were only debris and smokes. The place was almost unrecognizable. If it wasn’t for the Avengers cast, Tony would’ve questioned where he really was. 

 

“What happened here?” Tony asked, almost not wanting to know the answer but already knowing the answer. All the cast had bruises, cuts, and burns. 

 

“Well, remember the whole ‘switching Nebula’ thing? We thought we prevented it, but 2014 Nebula managed to still fool us. I guess you can’t change everything,” Robert said. 

 

“...Tom! Tom, please do NOT die on me!” Hemsworth yelled. Life was fading away from his eyes and there was a pool of blood forming on the ground. 

 

“I’m sorry…” Hiddleston said with a smile. 

 

The Avengers and the cast didn’t know what to do. Tony just made eye contact with Robert, and Robert just shook his head. As Hiddleston let out one of his last breaths, that’s when Loki came through and sat next to him. Without hesitation, Loki tightly held Hiddleston’s hand. A silver and blue light began to wrap Hiddleston’s body. 

 

“Wh-what are you doing?” Hemsworth asked, still crying. 

 

“...Saving his life,” Loki said. 

 

Within seconds, Hiddleston’s breathing was stabilized and he was able to open his eyes again. Hemsworth hugged him tightly. He didn’t know how Loki brought him back to life, but that didn’t matter. His brother, brother from another mother, was alive again. Hiddleston simply smiled and hugged him back. 

 

“You’re okay,” Tom said. He was back to normal, but still held Mjolnir in his hand. He set the hammer down and joined the hug. Hiddleston extended his arm and pulled Tom in--knowing how scared Tom was when Thanos charged at him with the sword. 

 

“I'm okay,” Hiddleston said. 

 

He then stood up and faced Loki. 

 

“Thank you for saving my life,” Hiddleston said. “I am forever in your debt.”

 

“Couldn’t let you die when I can save you,” Loki said. “You don’t deserve to die. You have a family.” 

 

“...So do you, Loki,” Hiddleston looked over at the Avengers, especially Thor. 

 

Robert ran up to Tom and hugged him and kissed him on his cheek. He really thought he was going to lose Tom, who was like a son to him--today. But the opposite happened. Tom ended up saving them all, including bringing the Avengers back from Vormir.

 

“I’m so, so proud of you,” Robert said, tearing up. “...But if you do anything like that ever again, you’re grounded for life, understood?”

 

“Robert, I’m 22! And you’re not my father--” 

 

“I’m your father, guardian whatever, as long as we are in the MCU, no questions,” Robert said. 

 

When two of them broke apart from the hug, they noticed every Avenger was staring at them. The rest of the cast looked surprised as well. 

 

“...You’re worthy,” Tony said, eyeing that Tom was holding Mjolnir. 

 

That’s when Tom looked down and finally realized that he was holding Mjolnir--Thor’s mighty hammer--his eyes widened. _He was holding a legendary hammer in his hand. He really just went off at Thanos like that._

 

Tom looked back at the Avengers, who were all staring at him--just like the time Vision simply handed Mjolnir over to Thor. No one made a sound, just blinked at Tom.

 

“I-I..I don’t even know how it happened,” Tom stuttered out of shock. “I just wanted...I just wanted to make sure he can’t hurt you guys.” 

 

"I knew leaving Mjolnir here was the right decision," Thor said. "I knew someone was worthy."

 

“You saved us all,” Evans said with a smile. “Both teams. If it weren’t for you, we never would’ve opened the Tunnel in time or at all.” 

 

Tom felt someone hugging him from behind--it was Tony. 

 

“I’m...thank you, Tom,” Tony said. “I’m proud of you.”

 

“Of course, Mr. Stark,” Tom said with a smile on his face. It was good to see him again. He was happy that all the Avengers were back. They were one step closer to bringing everybody back. “I’ve missed you.” 

 

Tony hugged him tighter than before. 

 

“You know, you two are really the same person,” Evans said, standing next to Robert. 

 

Robert just smirked.

 

That’s when they heard Thanos got up--he had some blood over his body, but other than that, he seemed fine. All the Avengers turned towards Thanos and got ready to fight him once again. Tony pulled Tom close to him, although he now knew Tom had one of the strongest weapons in his possession. That didn’t stop him from wanting to protect him. 

 

“Ah shit, here we go again,” Steve said, holding his shield up. _He was very, very sick of fighting Thanos over and over again._

 

Both Robert and Tony turned to him at the same time and raised their eyebrows. 

 

“...Did you just swear? What happened to ‘Language!’ Steve Rogers that I know?” Tony asked. 

 

“...Did you just quote a meme? I’m impressed, Rogers. Maybe you are not a grandpa after all,” Robert said, laughing. 

 

Steve rolled his eyes and ignored two Tony Starks. Thanos was approaching them at a fast pace, and they had to be ready. 

 

“I really hope this is our last time fighting Thanos,” Clint said. 

 

“Please. I’m getting sick of his grape ass,” Scott said, pressing the ‘Giant-Man’ button. Rocket frowned at him, while aiming the gun at Thanos. 

 

“His ass? Have you seen his ass before?” 

 

“I meant--I meant assface. Not his ass,” Scott yelled from above. “Either of them is gross anyway.” 

 

“Let’s end the fight here. Let’s kill him properly this time,” Thor said, lightning up. 

 

The rest of the Avengers nodded in agreement. Thanos was only a few feet away from them now. 

 

“The Avengers...I see you have all six stones in your possession,” Thanos said with a smile. 

 

“If you think we’re going to let you to even touch the stones, you’re very mistaken,” Robert said, stepping forward. 

 

“Who are you to determine that? You’re just one pathetic, arrogant human,” Thanos said. 

 

Robert smirked at what Thanos just said. 

 

“No, You’re wrong,” Robert said. “...FRIDAY, now!”

 

Several, possibly 15 or 20 Iron Man suits flew in from the damaged headquarters and hoovered in air, ready to attack. Robert then flew up and stood in the middle of the suits. 

 

“...I am...Iron Man.”

 

Along with the other suits, Robert flew towards Thanos with his thrusters without hesitation. Tony looked at what Robert has done and raised his eyebrows--when Tony handed the controls over to Robert, he didn’t expect him to be this flexible with the technology. In 2012 New York, he managed to knock Loki over with the suit--the suit that didn’t actually exist in his real life. While Tony and the other Avengers were gone, he managed to use all technology with ease and assigned other cast members with suitable gears. Now, Tony could see that Robert activated the ultimate ‘JARVIS Armor Protocol’--the very same one he used in 2013 when he went against Aldrich Killian. 

 

When Robert landed next to Tony, Tony nudged his arm. 

 

“I’m impressed,” Tony said with a smirk. “I didn’t want to admit, but maybe you really are me.” 

 

“ _House Party Protocol_. You don’t play the same character for over 10 years for nothing,” Robert said. “Ready to kick some ass?” 

 

“After you,” Tony said. 

 

The Avengers charged at Thanos at once--Tony and Robert at the very front and Tom followed with his Mjolnir in his hand. They managed to kick Thanos a couple of times, but not enough to completely knock him down and hold him long enough to kill him.

 

“...Use the Stones!” Scott yelled through the intercom. 

 

“No! That will make it easier for Thanos to take them and we already used them too much! It will tear even a bigger hole in the dimension!” Tony shouted back. 

 

Thanos threw Evans to the ground and stared down at the Avengers. 

 

“In all my years of conquest...violence...slaughter... It was never personal. But I'll tell you now... what I'm about to do to your stubborn, annoying little planet... I'm gonna enjoy it. Very, very much,” Thanos said. 

 

“ _Shit_ ,” Robert said, already knowing what’s about to happen. 

 

“...What? What’s happening?” Tony asked. Then, he saw _them_. 

 

Tony saw Ebony Maw and the rest of the ‘Children of Thanos,’ the Chitauri ( _God, he never hoped to see these bastards again in person after New York_ ), and the Outriders. Tony saw the vision, _his_ vision coming true. The vision that he saw back in 2015 was real--and now it was here. 

 

“...Fuck,” Tony said. _Please. I hope it worked._

 

“Maybe this is the time to use the Stones, Tony,” Bruce said. 

 

“No--if we use them again--the last barrier between this dimension and the other will break!” Tony said firmly. “You know what that means.” 

 

The cast looked at each other. _No more going home. This universe will collapse and it will merge into theirs and the world will turn into the ultimate chaos._

 

“...So what then? We’re just gonna sit around and wait for them to kill us?” Rocket asked. 

 

“We fight and do our best to hold them off,” Thor said. _He had lost so, so much. He had nothing to lose. What he always wanted was already with him: his brother Loki._

 

“We’ll lose,” Steve said, facing the hundreds, thousands of Thanos’ army. 

 

“...Then we’ll do that together too,” Tony said, standing next to him. 

 

Steve smiled. _Together._

 

Then, all of the sudden, a crackling noise came through Steve’s intercom. 

 

“...Cap, you hear me?” 

 

Steve was silent. He knew that voice. 

 

“Cap, it’s Sam. Can you hear me?” 

 

A wide grin spread across his face. He just nodded towards Tony, who also broke into a big smile. Before the cast could ask what was going on, they saw a yellow, sparkling portal forming behind them. The cast all understood what that meant. Then, a figure came out of the portal: _Sam Wilson, the Falcon_. 

 

“...On your left,” Sam said as he stepped out of Wakanda. 

 

Steve smirked at him. Soon, Sam was joined by T’challa, Shuri, Okoye. Dozens of same portals began to appear, and each portal spit out either battleships, or thousands of soldiers--including from Wakanda, Asgard, and the Sanctum. Straight from Titan, Dr. Strange, Peter Quill, Mantis, Peter Parker and Drax made their way back. Tony smiled again when he finally saw his kid again.

 

_So it was all worth it._

 

From the other side of Wakanda, Bucky and Groot came through with Wakandan soldiers. There was also Asgardian soldiers with Valkyrie and Wanda soon joined them. Hope Van Dyne appeared in the middle everyone, trying to figure out where she was. 

 

Lastly, Pepper Potts landed in her own Iron Man suit. 

 

“...Did you already make the suit for her?” Robert asked. 

 

“Yes, it was my late proposal gift,” Tony answered with pride. 

 

All of them--All the Avengers turned to Thanos and his army, ready to beat his ass off. Thanos had a confused but also scared look on his face, and Robert smirked at that. Tony looked behind him and smiled. 

 

"...Is that everyone?" Stephen asked to Wong, looking around him. 

 

"What, you wanted more?" Wong replied, frowning. 

 

_It worked. The plan worked. My plan...worked._

 

It was the best feeling Tony ever felt in years. 

  
  


_Vormir, 2018_. 

 

“...Something’s not right,” Tony said. 

 

“Yes, we all figured that out when we didn’t disappear from this planet,” Rocket said, rolling his eyes. 

 

“No, I mean, there’s only _one_ reason why we can’t go back to our time,” Tony said. 

 

“Which is?” Steve asked. 

 

“....The Quantum Tunnel is broken,” Tony said. “And who do you think has the power to do such a thing?” 

 

“...Thanos,” Bruce said. “Remember the cast told us that’s what happened in the original film? How he came through?” 

 

“But we stopped that,” Natasha said. “We stopped him from coming over to our time.” 

 

“What if we didn’t?” Tony asked. 

 

“What do you mean?” Steve asked, still not following where Tony was going with his questions and comments. 

 

“What if...same thing happened? What if...Nebula is from 2014?” 

 

Scott shook his head. 

 

“No, no, no. That can’t be. She seemed like she knew about us, about the cast,” Scott said. “Past Nebula can’t act like that.” 

 

“It’s possible,” Bruce said. “If she’s made of mechanical parts and if Thanos could access her memories...it wouldn’t be too hard to transfer the recent memories over to past Nebula.” 

 

Tony nodded. 

 

“She seemed very out of it when we were heading to Vormir...I thought it was because of her trauma, but now I think it was because she wanted to open the gate for Thanos to come through,” Tony said. 

 

Tony didn’t want it to be true. When Robert and the other cast members told him that Nebula was one of the main reasons that their plan went sideways and had to fight 2014 version Thanos on top of bringing everyone back--it stuck with Tony. With the MCU cast’s arrival, the Avengers managed to change a LOT of things, mostly for the better, but Tony knew life wasn’t easy that way. Movie plot or not, Tony had to admit, this universe _sucked_ . First he gets kidnapped, then a dumbass Asgardian invades Earth, then he has PTSD about the events, the person who killed his parents turns out to be Steve’s best friend, and now a giant grape man invades the universe. It would be just _too_ easy for the Avengers to bring everyone back without any backlashes. 

 

“...What do we then?” Natasha asked. “Are we just going to sit around and wait for them to open the tunnel?” 

 

Tony shook his head. 

 

“No--we would have to help them,” Tony said. “They won’t be able to face Thanos alone.” 

 

“How?” Scott asked. 

 

“...We would have to snap our own fingers, here,” Tony said. “And bring everyone back to 2018--to their moment.” 

 

“Is that even possible?” Steve asked.

 

“Tony, the snap alone will take a lot of energy,” Bruce said. “To bring them back to a specific point of time…? I don’t know if it’s going to work. Plus, if we do this, we can’t do another snap--it will break the dimension barrier for sure.” 

 

“But this, this was always our plan--wasn’t it?” Steve asked. “We’ll find another way to defeat Thanos and his army if he is really in the future with the other Avengers. But this...we can’t just stop here.”

 

“...We have to try,” Tony said. “If the six of us do it together...maybe we can all survive and guide everyone to 2018, not here.” 

 

Tony looked at the rest of the Avengers. If they were going to be stuck here, then they should at least try to help their reality. Each of them nodded. 

 

“Alright then,” Clint said. 

 

However, Thanos got up from the ground and headed towards the Avengers--more specifically, the two Stones that he didn’t have in his possession. Rocket, Loki, Scott, Pietro, and Rhodey immediately turned towards him, getting their own weapons ready. 

 

“You guys take care of the snap!” Scott yelled.

 

“We’ll take care of Thanos,” Loki said, using his magic to slow him down. 

 

Without hesitation, each original Avenger pulled out the Stones. They held onto each other--the power of the six Infinity Stones ran through them, making each one of them groan in pain. 

 

“Ugh...we have to snap our fingers!” Tony yelled. “Everyone ready...?” 

 

Five other Avengers nodded. 

 

“3...2...1…” 

 

_Snap!_

 

The six Avengers fell to the ground--but none of them let go of the stones just in case Thanos comes out of nowhere. They were all panting. However, it seemed like there was no huge damage to any of them, except for minor cuts and burns. They all turned to the five other Avengers who were trying their best to hold Thanos off. It looked like they didn’t have much time--Thanos was clearly winning with the majority of the Infinity Stones. 

 

“...Is this it?” Thor asked. “Is this the place where we die?”

 

No one said anything. They didn’t know the answer to that. Tony closed his eyes for a few seconds and opened them again. 

 

“No, Point Break,” Tony said. “...It isn’t.”

 

Without explanation, Tony simply changed into his Quantum Suit. The five Avengers who were fighting Thanos noticed him. 

 

“Trust me! It’s gonna work this time!” 

 

The other Avengers did the same--even the ones holding Thanos off managed to change into their suits. 

 

“...Let’s go home,” Tony said. 

 

Everyone pressed the button at the same time--and just like that, they were gone from Vormir. 

 

“No, Nooooooo!” 

 

Only Thanos’ angry howl filled the void of the planet. 

 

When the Avengers landed in 2018 by the headquarters, Tony looked around and saw the cast literally staring at Tom with absolute shock and relief. 

 

_Good. All of them were still aliv--most of them were. Loki’s counterpart is dying._

 

“...Did it work?” Tony asked, panting--referring to his time-jumping snap. 

 

He didn’t get his answer right away. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


As the Avengers faced Thanos and his army, Robert, Evans, Tony, and Steve stepped forward. All four of them looked at each other and nodded. 

 

“...So, who’s gonna say it?” Robert asked. 

 

“How about together?” Evans suggested. 

 

“Together sounds good,” Tony said. “We won’t win otherwise.” 

 

Evans and Steve both tightened their shields. Exchanging glances with each other, they yelled, 

 

“AVENGERS!” 

 

Robert and Tony smirked--

 

_This is one of the most iconic lines I will ever deliver._

 

_Ah, I’ve waited 7 years to say this._

 

\--then finished the phrase. 

 

“....ASSEMBLE!”


	17. I..am...IRON MAN

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers unite to fight Thanos and his army. However, when things do not go as they planned, they realize some sacrifice is inevitable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I didn't get much interaction between the cast, but since now there are a lot more characters in the story, I wanted to focus more on the interactions between them. The next chapter will be more centered around the cast.

The Avengers--hundreds, thousands of them--charged at Thanos and his army. With Tony, Robert, Steve, and Evans in lead, they crashed with the Chitauri, the Outriders, and god knows what other space species. Tony leaped into the air used the arc reactor in his chest to blast some Chitauri out of the way, and Pepper joined him. They were fighting together-- side by side. 

 

“Tony, if you don’t die today, I’ll kill you myself for making me fight while I’m pregnant!” Pepper yelled. 

 

_I don’t know what’s worse. Getting killed by Thanos or by Pepper. I mean..wait what?_

 

“Y-you are pregnant? With my child?!” Tony yelled back, while slashing another flying Chitauri with his Iron blade. 

 

“Of course I’m pregnant with your child! So you better not die and make me raise our kid alone!” 

 

“...I guess that night in the lab did it, huh? Ok, I promise! I promise I don’t leave you behind!” Tony yelled. 

 

“Can you stop your love quarrel and focus here, please?” Stephen Strange said he hoovered in the air. 

 

“Why do you always show up when Pepper and I are having a moment, dumbass?” Tony asked. “For the record, I didn’t miss you a bit, you dickhead!” 

 

Stephen rolled his eyes and continued to fight. When he opened his eyes again back at Titan, he sensed something was _different_. Yes, he knew the Avengers would time travel and collect each stone and snap their own fingers to bring everyone back to life--but for some reason, he felt like the future he was in was a bit different than the one he saw in his vision. For instance, he didn’t see two Iron Mans, two Captain Americas, two Thors...in his vision.

 

He looked back at Tony. Pepper had told him she was pregnant--which means it hasn’t been five years. If this was somehow a different reality than Stephen saw, then he hoped--really hoped that this wasn’t the reality Tony dies. 

 

Meanwhile, Steve just cut off one of the Outriders’ heads when he felt someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and found one person that mattered the most to him: _Bucky Barnes_. He still looked the same as Steve last saw him in Wakanda a month ago. Without saying anything first, Steve hugged him--his best friend, who has been with him since he was just a kid from Brooklyn. 

 

“...Hi, Steve,” Bucky said. 

 

“...You are back,” Steve said, tearing up. 

 

“What did I tell you? I’m with you til end of the line,” Bucky said. 

 

As one of the Outriders charged at the two, another figure stabbed it from the back, stopping it from reaching the reunited pair. 

 

“I get that you two want to hug and kiss each other, but can you please take into your consideration that you are in the middle of a damn war?” Sam Wilson said, pulling out his wings from the Outriders’ body. Bucky just rolled his eyes. 

 

“Hi, Sam. It’s good to see you again,” Steve said, smiling. 

 

“Good to see you, too--Cap,” Sam said, nodding. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Gamora looked down at the battle from the main warship. She then headed to the cell where future Nebula was kept in--the entire Thanos’ army was down on the ground, fighting the Avengers--the guards were gone, only leaving Nebula in a cell. Not that it mattered if the guards were still here. Gamora could take them down in seconds. 

 

She stepped into the cell Nebula was in. Nebula noticed her, but didn’t say anything. She looked like she gave everything up. 

 

“Tell me something. In the future, what happens to you and me?” Gamora asked. 

 

“I try to kill you. Several times,” Nebula answered. 

 

Gamora rolled her eyes. 

 

“But eventually...we become friends,” Nebula said, looking up at Gamora. “...We become sisters.” 

 

Gamora smiled. That’s all she wanted--for her and Nebula to be sisters. After Thanos taking her away from her home, Nebula was the only family she had. She was glad that it finally happened. 

 

“This is all my fault,” Nebula said, punching the ground. “He warned me...he warned me that this would happen. But I didn’t listen. I didn’t--” 

 

“No, this isn’t your fault, Nebula,” Gamora said. “Sometimes things happen. Come on, we can stop him.” 

 

Gamora held out her hand. Nebula took it and stood up. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Robert blasted one of the Chitauri ( _God, they were a LOT more disgusting in person  than the film_ ), and Peter webbed it. He jumped in front of Robert and started talking--not giving Robert a single second to tell him that he wasn’t Tony. 

 

“Hey! Holy cow. You will not believe what's been going on. Do you remember when we were in space? And I got all dusty? I must've passed out, 'cause I woke up, and you were gone. But Doctor Strange was there, right? He was like, "Come on, they need us!" And then he started doing the yellow sparkly thing that he does all the time…” 

 

Robert held his hand up. 

 

“Good. You’re back. Hey, Pete. I know this is gonna sound crazy, but I’m not Tony.” 

 

“What? What are you talking about?” Peter asked, frowning. _Was Mr. Stark pranking him right now?_

 

“Hey! You don’t get to talk to _my_ Peter!” a voice said behind him. Peter turned around and saw _another_ Tony Stark standing. He looked back and forth, and if he wasn’t hallucinating, then there were _two_ Tony Starks in front of him. 

 

“...He is,” Robert said, pointing.

 

Tony just walked up to Peter and hugged him tightly. 

 

“...This is nice,” Peter said, still confused. “Are we at the hugging stage then?” 

 

Tony pulled Peter back a bit so he could get a good look at him, his kid, and smiled, tears forming around his eyes. 

 

“I’m never losing you again, Pete,” Tony said. 

 

At that moment, Tom joined the three, and stood next to Robert. He was still holding Mjolnir. Robert put his arm around Tom, his Peter. 

 

“The plan worked,” Tom said. 

 

When Tony let go of him, Peter turned around and now found a replica of _himself_. More surprisingly, he was wearing the Stark suit and holding Thor’s hammer. 

 

“Mr. Stark, who are they?” Peter asked. “And why do they look just like us?” 

 

Robert and Tom looked at each other and started to laugh--Peter looked so scared. 

 

“...We are you,” Robert said. “But better.” 

 

Tony glared at his counterpart.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“...What part of my explanation did you NOT understand?!” Rocket yelled at Peter Quill while firing at the space monsters. 

 

“The entire fucking explanation!” Quill yelled back, blasting his guns. 

 

“That’s why you’re an idiot, Quill!” 

 

“What, you expect me to just believe the fact that a bunch of doppelgangers came through to this universe, who apparently play all these characters in their world, and you guys used their knowledge to time travel and collect all the Infinity Stones and brought all of us back?! What kind of explanation is that, _Trash Panda_?” 

 

“...You did NOT just call me Trash Panda! You take that back!” 

 

“He just did,” Drax said. “He totally did.” 

 

“I am Groot,” Groot said, nodding. 

 

Gamora and Nebula watched the Guardians argue. Gamora just shook her head. _This. These idiots were her team?! Or family?_

 

“...Gamora?” Quill called her. He slowly walked up to her. “I thought I lost you.” 

 

Quill touched Gamora’s face, to see if she was real, if she really was here, in front of him. Gamora grabbed his hand and twisted it. Then without any warning, she kicked him in the nuts. 

 

“Don’t. Touch. Me!” 

 

She kicked his nuts again. 

 

“You..You missed the first time…” Quill said. “Then you got them both the second time.” 

 

Quill groaned. 

 

“This is the one? Seriously?” Gamora turned to Nebula, who nodded. 

 

“The choices were him, or a tree,” Nebula said. 

 

“Hey!” Quill protested. 

 

“I am Groot!” Groot yelled in denial. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“Okay, What’s our plan?” Evans asked through her intercom. “We can’t use the stones again, so what’s our alternative?” 

 

“So _you_ are the other Cap dude from another dimension?” Sam asked. “Because you sound just like him.” 

 

Steve rolled his eyes. It took him a while for him to explain what happened while he and Bucky were gone and now Sam was _very_ excited to talk to his counterpart. 

 

“...Yes, I am,” Evans said, sighing. “We can discuss it later. So, anyone got a plan?” 

 

“Kill Thanos,” Robert said through the intercom. 

 

“....What do you think we’ve been trying to do, dipshit?” Tony yelled. 

 

“You guys killed him on the Garden, right? Maybe if we kill him--cut his head off again--the rest will surrender. Without Thanos, they are a bunch of army without a leader,” Robert said. 

 

“So like how Eleven killed the Mind Flayer in _Stranger Things_?” Tom asked. 

 

Robert turned to Tom with a frown. 

 

“What now?” 

 

“You mean how she killed off the host so the others could just die?” Peter asked. 

 

Tom nodded. 

 

“Wait--do you guys have _Stranger Things_ in your universe?” Tom asked, surprised that Peter knew exactly what he was talking about. 

 

“Yeah, it’s one of the best shows to exist,” Peter said. 

 

Robert and Tony looked at each other. At this point, they both admitted that they shared similar, if not identical personalities with each other. There was a reason that the Avengers and the cast called them out multiple times for acting exactly the same. What they didn’t expect, however, was for Tom and Peter to be the same way. It must be confusing for Peter who just came back to life to understand the existence of multiverse, but he instantly connected with his other self, Tom. Smiles formed on both Robert and Tony’s faces--it was good to see their kids interact with each other. 

 

“Ok, we got a plan,” Peter said to both Robert and Tony. 

 

“Eleven killed the Mind Flayer, or closed the gate using her telekinetic powers. Luckily, we have someone who has similar, if not stronger, powers: Wanda. Wanda can definitely hold Thanos,” Tom said. 

 

“Then, that’s when Thor uses his Stormbreaker to…” Peter said, motioning ‘the silt in the throat.’ 

 

“...That’s your plan?” Tony asked, unimpressed. 

 

“Thanos isn’t a host or something. Killing him won’t kill the rest, like it did in the show,” Robert reminded them. 

 

“We know--but--” 

 

Tom started to argue, but he was soon pulled behind by Robert, and Tony did the same with Peter. It seemed like Thanos already ordered the ‘Rain Fire.’ Hundreds of missiles began to fire at the ground. Tony and Robert put their shields up. 

 

“Did Wanda get to him yet?” Robert asked through the intercom. 

 

“No, but he’s heading for Nat!” Steve yelled. “I think he’s using this as a distraction so he can collect the stones.” 

 

Steve started to run towards Natasha, holding his shield up to his head. 

 

Meanwhile, Hemsworth and Hiddleston were trying their best to stay out of the missile range. They were still near by the van--they didn’t know anywhere else to go. Unlike other castmates, they didn’t have specialized weapons or powers of any kind to help the Avengers out. 

 

“...How did this even happen?” Hemsworth asked, turning to Hiddleston. 

 

“I don’t know, Chris. This...I don’t know how it’s real--” 

 

That’s when a missile hit the van and nearly blew the two up. They saw another one coming towards their way--Hemsworth and Hiddleston closed their eyes. This was it. Hiddleston firmly held his out, knowing that it was all useless…

 

Seconds passed, and nothing happened. Hiddleston slowly opened his eyes--and shocked at what he just saw, or what he just did. 

 

There was a shield, strong enough to hold back the missile, coming from his own hand. The shield was made out of ice and Hiddleston could feel his hand growing cold. Hiddleston put more strength to his hand, and the shield expanded, shattering the missile in front of his eyes. 

 

“Chris…?” Hiddleston called, looking down at his hand. 

 

“Did you just ...?” Hemsworth looked at him out of shock. 

 

Hiddleston nodded. 

 

“...I think Loki gave powers to me,” Hiddleston said. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Natasha was almost strangled to death when Steve finally reached her. Steve immediately jumped on Thanos, trying to stop him. But Thanos was too strong--Steve was thrown to the ground and Thanos punched him in the face. Blood began to ooze out of Steve’s nose. As he touched his nose with his right hand, the Time Stone fell out of his pocket. Even before Steve could make a move, Thanos stomped on his leg, and Steve heard his bones breaking. He screamed. 

 

“Two down...four to go…” Thanos said. 

 

Steve and Natahsa lay down next to each other, both heavily breathing. 

 

“...I’m sorry,” Natsha said. “I let him have mine.” 

 

“Me too,” Steve said. 

 

Steve slowly grabbed Natasha’s hand. 

 

“You have blood on your hand,” Natasha said, laughing.

 

Steve laughed with her.

 

“Thanos already got two stones,” Robert said. “At this rate, he’s going to have all of them.” 

 

“...Not on my watch,” Tony said. “FRIDAY, activate _Select Aim Protocol_.”

 

“Yes, Boss. It will be ready in 20 minutes.” 

 

As Tony turned around, Robert grabbed his arm. 

 

“...You can’t kill Thanos with that,” Robert said. 

 

“I know, but you gotta get rid of his army, right?” Tony said. 

 

“....I have a plan,” Robert said. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Wanda was fiercely holding the missiles off with her powers. Then, she felt a familiar _whoosh_ and before she knew it, her brother Pietro was carrying her. When he let her go, she just blankly stared at him. She couldn’t believe her eyes. _Maybe she was still dead. Maybe--she was seeing illusions. He--he died a few years ago. Wanda felt it. She felt a piece of her heart being ripped._ But here he was, in front of her. 

 

“...You didn’t see that coming?” Pietro said, smirking. 

 

Wanda hugged him. He was real. He was so, so real. 

 

“...You are alive,” Wanda said. “You’re--” 

 

“And so are you,” Pietro said. 

 

They looked at each other. 

 

“I’ve missed you,” both of them said at the same time. 

 

At that moment, the missiles stopped firing. Pietro and Wanda looked up. The missiles instead aimed at the sky, at the clouds. 

 

“FRIDAY, what are they firing at?” Tony asked. 

 

“Something just entered the upper atmosphere,” FRIDAY said. 

 

Robert smirked. The entire cast smiled. They knew who was coming--and it meant they were one step closer to victory. As expected, Captain Marvel flew through the clouds and destroyed Thanos’ giant warship in seconds, without hesitation. Thanos stared at her with shock and horror. It seemed like she didn’t even have any weapons in her possession...the weapon was _her_. 

 

“Oh, yeah!” Rocket yelled in excitement. 

 

Steve and Natahsa got up. 

 

“...This means we have a shot at him, right?” Natasha asked, looking up. 

 

“I hope so,” Steve said. 

 

However, things weren’t looking that great for the Avengers. Ebony Maw was using his powers to drag Clint to him, so he can take the Mind Stone. Bruce was already on the ground, barely staying alive inside his shattered Hulkbuster. The Mind Stone began to move, and Clint tried to resist, but the best he could do was plant his feet on the ground. As the Stone reached Maw’s hand, Wanda appeared and snapped Maw’s neck. 

 

“...I’ve been wanting to do that for ages,” Wanda said. 

 

The Space and Mind Stone fell from Maw’s hands--but Thanos picked them, and added to his infamous gauntlet. Wanda aimed her powers at Thanos, but he easily blocked with the Mind Stone, laughing. 

 

“...You don’t deserve that stone,” Wanda said. She thought of Vision, how he died at the hands of Thanos not long ago. “You...took...everything...from me….” 

 

“I don’t even know who you are,” Thanos said, still laughing. 

 

“.. _.You will,_ ” Wanda said, her eyes lighting up red. She hovered in the air and choked Thanos. She made sure he couldn’t move his hands so he wouldn’t be able to use the stones. Wanda was using both hands, sucking the life out of Thanos. Thor instantly jumped on him and cut off his head. 

 

Peter and Tom watched Thanos getting killed and high-fived each other. 

 

_Their plan worked. It--_

 

That’s when they heard his voice again. 

 

“...Reality’s often disappointing, isn’t it?” Thanos said. 

 

He walked out, and his ‘corpse’ and ‘head’ disappeared from the Avengers’ sight. Thanos was standing there with his gauntlet--now five Infinity Stones in his hand. Time. Soul. Space. Mind...and _Reality_. 

 

Tony and Robert looked at each other. Tony checked his pockets-- _the Reality Stone was still there._  

 

“What the…?” Robert said. 

 

“It wasn’t difficult for me to locate the Reality Stone in Knowhere,” Thanos said. “With Nebula’s memory--it took a bit of questioning.” 

 

“ _Shit_ ,” Robert said. He thought even if Thanos got all other five stones--if they could protect the Reality Stone away from him, they could prevent him from doing the snap again. He looked around. Wanda was exhausted from pouring all of powers out, Thor was still trying to understand that he actually _didn’t_ kill Thanos. Thanos didn’t miss out on the opportunity and grabbed Thor by his neck. 

 

“Thor! No!” Robert yelled. 

 

Thor was trying to summon his Strombreaker, which was only inches away. 

 

“...You know, you really should’ve killed me on that ship,” a voice said behind him. 

 

Loki grabbed Thanos by his arm with his magic. 

 

“I’m not letting you kill my brother,” Loki said. Soon, he was joined by his other self, Hiddleston. He was projecting ice blasts at Thanos. 

 

“...I see you’re using the powers quite well,” Loki said, smirking. 

 

“Well, thank you,” Hiddleston said. 

 

That managed to let Thor escape from Thanos’ grasp and grab his Strombreaker. He immediately directed lightning at him, and Tom joined in with Mjolnir. Thanos groaned in pain and then used the Space Stone to escape the moment, only to reappear behind Thor and ripping the Power Stone out of his hand. Thanos added the final stone to his collection.

 

_No. No. No. No._

 

Robert was internally screaming. He had all the stones. If he uses them--more than half of the universe will die because of the dimension crisis. He had to do something. Then, an idea popped into his mind. It was something he learned during his years as Tony Stark and Iron Man. Only used once in the films for a different purpose, but it had its potential.  This wasn’t his original plan--but was similar. 

 

_Guess you can’t win something like this without some sacrifice._

 

“...Whatever it takes,” Robert said. 

 

“What?” Tony looked at him. Robert took the Reality Stone from Tony and ran towards Thanos. As Thanos gathered himself and was about to snap his fingers, Captain Marvel flew in and stopped him for a moment. Robert noticed, but didn’t stop running. If he was right, then…

 

She managed to hold Thanos off, but Thanos took out the Power Stone from the gauntlet and aimed it at her, causing her let go of his hand and thrown in the air. 

 

 _This is the only way._   

 

Steve then tried to hold Thanos off, like he did back in _Infinity War_. Again, Thanos was taken aback by his strength and his determination. 

 

“...You never stop, do you?” Thanos said. 

 

“...I can do this all day,” Steve said, covered in blood and barely standing. Thanos punched him in the face again, and Steve fell, left unconscious. 

 

“Steve!” Bucky yelled. 

 

Robert was still running. Thanos was about to snap his fingers again.

 

“...I..am...inevitable,” Thanos said, adjusting the gauntlet.  

 

And that was when Robert used his final thruster and jumped on Thanos. He briefly used the Reality Stone to trick Thanos of his exact location--only for a few seconds. He then put the arc reactor on Thanos’ chest and grabbed the gauntlet so that Thanos couldn’t snap right away. 

 

“And I...am...IRON MAN,” Robert said, heavily breathing. “FRIDAY, activate _Clean Slate Protocol_!” 

 

“NOOOOOOOO!” 

 

Robert could hear Tony screaming--he was in panic mode, and running to him as fast as he could. 

 

“ROBERT!!!”

 

Tom was calling him now, holding Mjolnir in his hand. He was crying. The entire Avengers and the cast were calling his name. But it was too late. 

 

_This was the only way. It can’t be Endgame without some sacrifice, can it?_

 

The blue arc reactor beeped, and it exploded, taking Thanos with it. And Robert..Robert felt the heat throughout his body and getting thrown to the ground. He saw Thanos turning into ashes. And at that moment, missiles from the sky, from above the clouds and atmosphere, began to attack Thanos' army. _Select Aim Protocol_ worked. Robert chuckled--the snap didn’t kill him this time...but guess the end is the same regardless. 

 

Robert saw Tony, Tom, Steve, Evans, Hemsworth, Mark, Scarlett, Jeremy running towards him. He smiled. He kept his promise. He said he’s going to save Tony Stark.

 

And he just did that. 

 

_The Endgame was over._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys liked how the Avengers defeated Thanos--personally, I thought about this many times, and I thought this was the best. I didn't want to copy the film's plot completely but I still wanted Iron Man to defeat Thanos in a way. And one of the main reasons I took out the Snap as the soultion, it's because it's done so many times already (in the film and in this fanfic as well) and I thought it is plausible that if people keep snapping, there will be a breach in the dimension or something similar to that. 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you guys liked it! And sorry for ranting.


	18. He was the real hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers mourn Robert's death. Tony gets to experience the other side of his dimension for a bit. 
> 
>  
> 
> Meanwhile--something extraordinary and horrifying happens in Germany.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was orginally gonna do 20 chapters, but after I wrote this chapter, I didn't think it was necessary. However, I decided to turn this into a series, so technically the story isn't over. (You will see why at the end of the chapter). The next story will be called "One Thing You Can't Take Away." 
> 
> Thank you so, so much for loving this story! I hope to see many of you for the Part 2 :)

The first person to reach Robert was Tom. Tom was _sobbing_ , knowing what was about to happen. But..but...this wasn’t supposed to happen.  Robert should be alive and happy, promoting _Avengers: Endgame_ in Hollywood, being emotional about Tony Stark’s death--but not his. He should be with his wife Susan, laughing. But no, here he was, in Marvel Cinematic Universe, on the verge of dying. Tom couldn’t hold his tears back. 

 

“...Robert?” Tom called, crying. 

 

“Hey...Robert? Can you hear me? It’s..Tom,” Tom said, breaking down. “We won, Robert. We won, Robert...We won and you did it, sir. You did it--” 

 

Robert put his hand on Tom’s face, wiping his tears off with a sad smile. 

 

“...Hey, Tom,” Robert said. “It’s going to be okay.” 

 

Tom shook his head. He had felt same emotions when he filmed Tony’s death scene a year ago, but this...this was much worse. The man sitting in front of him, almost lifeless, wasn’t a fictional character. It was _Robert Downey Jr_ \--his mentor, guardian, and possibly a father figure. And now Tom was about to lose him, the same exact way Peter did in the film. 

 

Hugging Tom, Evans walked up to Robert and sat in front of him--there were also tears in his eyes. His eyes were already red. Robert smirked. 

 

“What’s the matter, Dorito? You look very sad,” Robert said, still smiling. 

 

They both knew what was coming. Evans knew this was Robert’s way of holding the tears and the pain back. Evans couldn’t stop crying. He couldn’t believe his friend...his best friend was dying in another universe, taking the fate of Tony Stark in the original MCU. 

 

“...Robert--you did good,” Evans said, choking up. “You are a true hero. You really are. I’m--”

 

Evans was unable to finish. Instead, he just hugged Robert tightly. He had burns all over his body--they were covering half of his face and his right arm. It was as if Robert took the fate of Tony in the film. Hemsworth, Scarlett, Mark, and Jeremy cried--and they soon joined the hug. Robert looked up. 

 

“Group hug. The OG hug. This is nice,” Robert said. 

 

When all of them let go, Tony walked up to him. Tony looked at himself and for the first time, just smiled. No judgement. No sarcasm. No jokes. He then put his hand on Robert’s shoulder. 

 

“...It was dumb of you to do that,” Tony said. “You--you would’ve survived if you had your suit on.” 

 

Robert chuckled. 

 

“Then we would be all dead,” Robert said. “Can’t activate the protocol without taking the suit off. Who’s the dumb one now?” 

 

It was Tony’s turn to laugh--but it didn’t last long. 

 

_Damn the Clean Slate Protocol. Maybe I shouldn’t have given him full access. Then maybe he wouldn’t be dying._

 

Tony couldn’t help but feel guilty. According to the film, it was him who was supposed to be dying. He was of course glad that he didn’t have to leave Pepper, Peter, and now his child, but--he never wanted another person--especially another version of himself--to take his place. 

 

“...Robert,” Tony called. This was the first time Tony called him by his first name--no nicknames--no insults. “...Thank you. For everything.”

 

Tony eyed Peter, who was sobbing with Tom. Without Robert...he wouldn’t--he wouldn’t have his kid back or watch him grow up. Robert smiled and turned to Tom. 

 

“...Tom. I love you kid,” Robert said. “Tell my family I love them...that I love them 3000.” 

 

The entire cast let out a small chuckle at the ultimate _Endgame_ reference. Tom nodded, still crying. 

 

“Will do, Robert.” 

 

Robert let out his last breath--and closed his eyes. They didn’t open again. Robert sat there--completely lifeless. The cast let tears fall--they just lost the godfather of the MCU and more importantly, their best friend. 

 

_Whatever it takes._

 

Robert had said. 

 

People jokingly have been saying Robert and Tony were the same person--and now that was true. They both didn’t hesitate to save the universe. Robert--was the real hero. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Funeral for Robert Downey Jr. was done in the same way as it did for Tony Stark in _Avengers: Endgame_ . Since the cast wanted to take his body back to their dimension, Tony took his first arc reactor that Pepper gave him--’ _Proof that Tony Stark has a heart_ ’--and decorated it with the flowers. Every Avenger--from Tony to Nick Fury, even--watched the arc reactor float away in the lake. 

 

Tony hugged both Peter and Tom--he knew he couldn’t be Robert to Tom, but wanted to comfort him somehow. Scarlett was leaning against Evans and Hemsworth and Hiddleston stood next to each other. Jeremy and Mark stood behind them--their eyes were bright red from crying all night. The Avengers paid their respects to the hero--the one who saved them all. Yes, it was the Original Six who brought them back from the Snap, but if it wasn’t for Robert’s sacrifice, they would be dead again. 

 

After the funeral, most Avengers part their ways--saying goodbye to the cast and thanking them for what they have done. Tony started to work on the Alternate Dimension Portal already, thinking this was the best he could do for Robert. He would want his friends-- _family_ \--to go back to their dimension as soon as possible. Since he had already figured out the Quantum Tunnel--it wasn’t difficult for him to design a similar, but different machine. He was also working on Quantum Tunnel as well--so the Avengers could return the stones to where they belong after the Alternate Dimension Portal was finished. As Tony was working on the portal, he found a mysterious black box. He opened it--and he recognized what it was. It was _B.A.R.F. (Binarily Augmented Retro-Framing)_ that he introduced to the world two years ago. He picked it up. In the box, there was a notecard that said: 

  


_For my second family & Earth’s mightiest heroes. _

 

_-Robert Downey Jr and the better Tony Stark_

  


Tony chuckled. 

 

_Oh, you never stop being dramatic, do you?_

 

Tony immediately called the remaining Avengers  and the cast.

 

“...Guys, I found something that you guys might wanna see,” Tony said. 

 

After everyone gathered around in the living room, Tony pressed ‘PLAY.’ 

 

A hologram of Robert appeared. He was sitting on a chair, backwards, just like Tony was in _Endgame_. 

 

“Hi, guys. If you are watching this...well--that means, I’m dead,” Robert said. “Everybody wants a happy ending, right? But it doesn't always roll that way. Maybe this time. I'm hoping if you play this back, it's in celebration. I hope families are reunited, I hope we get it back, and something like a normal version of the planet has been restored. If there ever was such a thing. If you had told me 10 years ago that I’m going to be a major part of the MCU, I wouldn’t have believed you. My career was tanked, and I--I was going nowhere. This-this role--Tony Stark has been more than just another role for me. It’s the greatest thing ever happened in my life.” 

 

Evans smiled at that. He knew Robert has been through some rough times before he took the role of Iron Man in 2008--and he was glad that he did. Without RDJ, MCU would not have expanded this much. 

 

“...I hope, at the end of this--we would be all alive and celebrating together. And when we go back to our world--we would tell these amazing, phenomenal stories to our families. But something tells me that not everything will end in our favor. So I thought I'd probably better record a little greeting... In the case of an untimely death on my part. Not that, death in any time isn't untimely. This time travel thing that we're gonna try and pull off tomorrow, it's... it's got me scratching my head about the survivability of it all. But then again, that's the hero gig. Part of the journey is the end. If everyone else survives--especially Tony and Nat--and they could reunite with their friends and watch Peter and Morgan grow up...I’m okay with ending my character like this. From the very beginning, I wanted to save my friend and hero--Tony Stark.” 

 

Tony smiled--it was a sad one--but he was grateful. 

 

“Uh, what am I even trippin' for? Everything's gonna work out exactly the way it's supposed to,” Robert said, standing up. He looked straight at the cast. 

 

“...You guys are the best family I could ask for,” Robert said. “I love you 3000.”

 

The hologram message ended and Robert disappeared. Everyone was crying again. It finally hit them. Robert was gone. From this world and universe. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_Several weeks later._   

  
  


The Alternate Dimension Portal was done--it was time for the cast to finally go home. Tony made sure that the Portal would work without the six Infinity Stones in place--he just needed them to start off the machine. They put Robert’s body in a huge box and shrunk it using Scott’s technology for Ant-man. 

 

“...I made sure I can manage the time here,” Tony said to the cast. “You guys should go back to right where you were before you got sucked into this universe.” 

 

The cast nodded. 

 

“...Thank you, Tony,” Evans said with a faint smile. It still hurt to see Tony--because he reminded him so much of Robert. Tony hugged Evans. After they let go of each other, Tom ran into Tony’s arms. Tony simply hugged him back--and even gave a kiss on his cheek. He...he was so much like Peter. Tony didn’t let go of Tom for a very long time. 

 

“You can come over here anytime you want, Tom,” Robert said. “You were here for me when I needed Peter. Now it’s my turn to do that. The portal’s always active and here’s the Opener.” 

 

Tony handed him a small, silver and blue device to Tom, who took it with a smile. 

 

“...Thank you, Mr. Stark,” Tom said. 

 

“I have the Opener for each of you,” Tony said, taking them out. “I will always be here, so if you ever need me…” 

 

The cast smiled and took the Openers with gratitude. Tony then activated the Portal and it made whirring noise and formed a blue barrier for the cast to go through. 

 

“I guess this is it...for now,” Tony said. 

 

The cast turned towards the Portal. As they walked towards it, Evans called Tony as if he remembered. 

 

“...Tony, would you do us a favor?” Evans asked. 

 

“Sure, I would be happy to,” Tony said. 

 

“We’re going back to the _Endgame_ Premiere and we...are not ready to explain everything to the public and Robert’s family yet. Would you mind coming with us for a day or two?” 

 

“...You want me to pretend that I’m Robert Downey Jr.?” 

 

“If you don’t want to--” 

 

Tony cut off Evans’ words quickly. _Of course he would love to portray Robert. Also this was his chance to see another dimension for the first time._

 

“...I would love to do that, Capsicle,” Tony said. “It would be my pleasure.” 

 

Tony turned to the Avengers and waved goodbye. 

 

“Look, you are in charge while I’m gone--Peter,” Tony said. 

 

“Really?” Peter asked, surprised. 

 

“Why is he in charge? He’s a kid!” Clint protested. 

 

“...Let me think. Oh, I know why. Because first of all, Peter is a genius like me, so he’s smarter than all of you, and he is the only other person who has access to FRIDAY,” Tony said. 

 

Peter’s face turned red  from Tony’s compliment and his trust in him. 

 

“Ok, let’s go,” Tony said, pushing the cast towards the Portal. 

 

One by one, the cast went through the barrier. It was like going through a door. When they stepped out of the Portal, everyone was in the Premiere room--including both Tom’s. 

 

“Don’t you guys need to go back?” Evans asked. 

 

“...We want to watch the movie,” Tom said. “For Robert. Shooting can wait.” 

 

“I was at my own home anyway,” Hiddleston said. 

 

Evans simply nodded. Hemsworth put his arm around Hiddleston.

 

“So glad you are staying, Tom!” 

 

Tony gently put his arm around Tom and pulled in for a hug. 

 

“...I’m here, Tom,” Tony said softly. 

 

At that moment, one of the staff members came in and told the cast it was time for them to go on the stage. With Tony in the front, the Avengers cast made their way to the stage, to introduce the film. Kevin Feige and the Russo Brothers were already up on the stage, waiting for the cast to appear. They were quite surprised to see both Tom’s there. They both mouthed ‘ _Let’s talk later._ ’ 

 

As the Avengers made their entrance, enormous cheering erupted from the audience, who were hundreds of people. They were even standing up and making whistle noises. Both Tom’s stayed behind, because it wasn’t the time for them to go up there yet. The Original Six went up the stage and joined Kevin and the Russos. 

 

Tony, who was very familiar with publicity, was actually shocked at the amount of people cheering for the cast. He knew it would be quite a big deal, but he didn’t know TONS of people loved so-called MCU. The cheers were loudest for Tony--or Robert--which made Tony happy. When the cheers died down, the cast made a gesture for Tony to speak first. 

 

“...Hi,” Tony said, holding the microphone. “How’s everyone doing tonight?” 

 

The audience screamed and shouted in excitement. 

 

“First of all, thank you so much for being here tonight,” Tony said. “It’s been my absolute pleasure to be a part of this universe, this family. I’m eternally grateful for this team.” 

 

Evans spoke next. 

 

“I never thought taking on the role of Captain America eight years would lead me here,” Evans said. “I was nervous to take this role, and that’s why I refused three times. But now, looking back, playing Steve Rogers was the best choice I ever made. And you guys made it possible. So thank you to you all.” 

 

“When I first started to play Thor in 2011, I never thought I would be a part of this massive universe,” Hemsworth said. “I can’t believe we’ve already reached the end of an era. This wouldn’t be possible without you amazing fans.” 

 

“I first joined MCU in 2010,” Scarlett said. “It was a privilege to represent one of the first female superheroes in the MCU. Natasha will always hold a special place in my heart. Thank you for supporting her for all these years.” 

 

“Playing Bruce Banner and the Hulk was so much fun all these years,” Mark said. “I will never forget the love I received through this franchise. And sorry for spoiling a lot of things.” 

 

Laughter ensued from the audience and from the cast. Lastly, it was Jeremy’s turn to speak. 

 

“It’s been an honor to be a part of the OG Six,” Jeremy said. “Can’t wait for you guys to see what happens in the film!”

 

Jeremy looked at Tony. Tony nodded, knowing what to do. 

 

“I know you guys waited a year for this film since _Infinity War,_ so without further ado, we are proud to present _Avengers: Endgame_!” 

 

As the audience cheered again, the cast made their way back to their seats at the very front. Evans sat next to Tony. 

 

“...Thank you, Tony. You did an amazing job,” Evans whispered right before the film began. 

 

“No problem, Cap,” Tony said. 

 

As the film began, Tony was amazed at how accurate things were up until the screen blacked out and words ‘FIVE YEARS LATER’ appeared. The CGI was incredibly accurate too--especially the Iron Man suits and the Quantum suits. Tony noticed the changes that he and the cast made. Although it didn’t happen in his universe, Tony shed tears as Natasha sacrificed herself for the Soul Stone. But he couldn’t help but smile at the sight of Morgan--his daughter. He couldn’t wait to tell Pepper that they’re having a little girl. She was so adorable. It broke his heart when he saw himself--or Robert--snapped Thanos and his army from existence. It was as if he was watching Robert die again. And the message--mostly to Morgan--made Tony to sob. He finally understood why Robert kept saying “ _I love you 3000_ ” to the cast--it was so special.

 

After the film ended, the entire cast of _Avengers: Endgame_ joined on the stage. Most of the cast were crying as well and the audience giving them a standing ovation while crying. Tony grabbed the mic but couldn’t speak for a while. It was just too much for him to handle. 

 

“...I want you to know that it’s been an honor and privilege to be your Tony Stark for the last decade. This is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I love you all--3000.” 

 

More cheers and applause filled the theater. Kevin and the Russos also thanked the fans. At the very end, the entire cast bowed and left the stage. Before they headed for the after party, the cast and Tony went back to the room to discuss the future in this universe. 

 

“...When are we telling the truth?” Hemsworth asked. 

 

“We’ll tell Robert’s family...tomorrow. Tonight’s gonna be crazy,” Evans said. “Also...I think it’s better to not tell the public or other people about his death.” 

 

“What?” Scarlett turned to Evans. 

 

“Chris, we can’t hide his death forever,” Mark pointed out. 

 

“Why not? It’s not like they will believe that he died saving a version of MCU anyway,” Evans said. 

 

“We can tell them he died in a car accident,” Jeremy suggested. 

 

“...I don’t think that’s plausible either,” Scarlett said. “What are the chances of getting into a lethal car accident right after the premiere?” 

 

“Actually quite high--” Jeremy started to argue. 

 

“We shouldn’t tell the public,” Tom said. Everyone turned to him. “Chris is right. No one would believe us--and it’s very unlikely. We just tell Robert’s family because they deserve to know. But the public doesn’t need to know. Tony can come over once in a while to make brief appearances.” 

 

The cast and Tony were taken aback by the fact that Tom sounded so determined, but decided to agree with him at the end. 

 

“Alright then,” Hemsworth said. 

 

Tom didn’t say anything else, but there was another reason for his choice. 

 

_Something was telling him that announcing his death to the public was not a good idea._

 

It almost felt like Spidey Sense...but he wasn’t _actually_ Peter Parker or Spider-Man, so he couldn’t have the actual Spidey Sense.

 

Right? 

 

_Right?_

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_Five Years Later._

  
  
  


Tony was carrying Morgan to her bedroom. They just had a juice pop, and as he tucked Morgan into her bed, she asked for a bedtime story. Tony would’ve usually said it’s too late for that, but today...today was a special day. 

 

Five years ago today, Robert gave his life so that Tony could live with his family. 

 

He retired from being Iron Man--so did Steve. Unlike in the film, Steve did not go back in time to stay with Peggy. He still returned the stones back to their original places. Steve only stopped in 1970 for a day to get that long overdue dance. Tony sensed that Steve and Natasha might have a thing together, and just like he thought, the two started to date not long after Steve came back from his last mission. Five years later, they were going strong--Tony wondered when Steve was going to propose to Nat. Probably soon. 

 

“Dad?” Morgan called Tony. 

 

“Yeah, sure, I’ll tell you a story,” Tony said, smiling at his daughter. 

 

“Yay!” 

 

“This is a very, very special one,” Tony said. “This is about a man named Robert. He was annoying, sarcastic, and arrogant at some times, but in the end he was brave. Very, very brave.” 

 

“...Robert was a hero? Like you?” Morgan asked. 

 

Tony smiled. 

 

“Yes,” Tony said. “...He was the real hero.” 

 

Tony then told Morgan all about Robert, from his and the cast’s arrival to this universe and his heroic sacrifice. 

 

_Thank you, Robert. I’m watching Morgan grow up because of you._

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_Nuremberg, Germany, 2018._

 

Robert’s eyes jolted open. All he could see was darkness. He wondered if this was what hell looked like. When he tried to get up--but he couldn’t. He then saw that he was tied to a bed with chains--both his arms and legs. He tried to break free of them, but it was no use. At that moment, doors opened, and several figures came in. They turned on the light. Robert had no idea who they were--but figured out he didn’t die after all.

 

_But dying was probably a better option._

 

“...You’re finally awake, Mr. Stark,” the man in white lab coat said. 

 

“I’m not Tony Stark,” Robert said. 

 

“Oh, I know--that’s why you’re here,” the man said. “But you are a Stark in a way.” 

 

_He knows. Oh, this was worse. Much worse._

 

“...I thought I died,” Robert said. “Also, Where am I?” 

 

“You are in Nuremberg, Germany,” the man said. “You did, Mr. Stark. But we revived you--similar to Project T.A.H.I.T.I of SHIELD’s,.--but better.” 

 

Robert was afraid to ask who ‘we’ were. Deep down, he already knew the answer. Germany...but NOT SHIELD..

 

“...Who’s we?” Robert still asked, just for confirmation. 

 

“HYDRA,” the man said. “I’m Brian Kuznetsov, the head of the department.” 

 

_Oh, fuck. Why didn’t I just die?_

 

“...What did you do to me?” Robert asked. 

 

“We made you an Enhanced--stronger than the Maximoff twins,” Kuznetsov said. “You’re our newest--and the best--asset.” 

 

“...I’m not your asset, asshole,” Robert said. “You might as well kill me. I’m not working for your filthy organization.”

 

A smile formed on Kuznetsov’s lips. Robert did NOT like that. 

 

“...Of course you are, Mr. Stark,” Kuznetsov said. “Because you won’t remember a thing about your past.” 

 

Robert closed his eyes. 

 

_So I’m gonna be their next Winter Soldier. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck._

 

“Don’t worry. We’ve developed a better technology for erasing memories--it won’t hurt at all,” Kuznetsov said. 

 

Robert scoffed. 

 

_Oh, that’s supposed to make things better?_

 

The soldiers, who had the HYDRA mark on their arms, took Robert to another room. If Robert didn’t know any better, he would’ve said he was at a hospital for an MRI scan. The soldiers put Robert onto the machine and chained him. They stepped out and Kuznetsov pressed a button behind the glass. 

 

“Sweet dreams, Mr. Stark,” Kuznetsov said. “See you on the other side.” 

 

As Robert felt the machine working, he closed his eyes. He didn’t know this was real--he didn’t know if anything he experienced for the past month has been real. He really, really hoped this was all just a terrible nightmare. Maybe if he opened his eyes again right now, he would wake up next to Susan--the night before the premiere. 

 

But he didn’t. 

 

Robert sighed. 

 

Seconds before the procedure, Robert thought to himself. 

 

_I am Iron Man._

 

Then his mind went blank.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to turn this into a series because as I was writing this one, I wanted this to be more than just the cast helping the Avengers defeat Thanos. I saw the potential to expand this into something bigger, something that involved more creativity and more than just a basic plot. (Not gonna lie, I also didn't want Robert's story to end like that). So I hope you guys like my decision of expanding this and turning it into more complicated fic. 
> 
> The next story will be focused on the Avengers and the cast joining forces together to find Robert and possibly bringing him back. I'm not sure yet but the series might have three parts.
> 
> I love you all 3000 for all the positive comments and kudos. I hope you guys like the next story as well.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you guys for the support & love!!
> 
> Kudos/comments are appreciated.


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